An article published online by editor and writer Melissa Denchak highlighted some shocking stormwater statistics coming out of America. Denchak stated that ‘an estimated 10 trillion gallons of untreated stormwater runoff, containing everything from raw sewage to trash to toxins, enters U.S waterways from city sewer systems every year, polluting the environment and drinking supplies… [with] runoff causes significant flooding as well.’ (Denchak 2022). 

Denchak described the ‘U.S Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that upgrading the stormwater and other public water systems will require at least $150 billion in investment over the next two decades. 

This problem is not unique to the U.S, it is a problem all over the globe. The question is, how do we address the issues caused by stormwater runoff?

In this article, Citygreen will argue that green infrastructure offers a cost-effective solution to handling flooding and stormwater pollution. 

To start, let’s break down the basics. 

Why is Green Infrastructure Important for Managing Stormwater? 

Green infrastructure sets out to replicate the circular economy of the natural environment. Attempting to mirror the efficient and self-renewing processes found in nature.

In urban settings, green infrastructure encompasses a variety of water management practices, such as treepits, planted verges, bioretention pits, swales and other measures that capture, filter, and reuse stormwater. Essentially, green infrastructure replicates natural hydrological processes using soil and plants to slow down, recycle and clean stormwater runoff.

What is Stormwater Runoff?

Stormwater runoff is the product of a rain event causing water to flow across the land into sewers and waterways. With the expansion of our bustling cities and the widening sprawl of our urban areas, there are more impermeable surfaces than ever, increasing the intensity of stormwater runoff.

According to Denchak, ‘the average city block can generate more than five times as much runoff as a forested area of equal size’ (Denchak 2022). 

What is an Example of a Successful Green Infrastructure Project? 

Denchak proposed that New York’s Staten Island Bluebelt was the ‘first and largest green infrastructure project in the U.S.’ A rapid increase in population size saw the Island struggling to deal with sanitary waste and stormwater runoff.

The Bluebelt project ‘helped solve these issues by preserving streams, wetland areas, and other drainage corridors (Bluebelts) that use natural mechanisms to capture, store, and filter stormwater’ (Denchak 2022). Nowadays, the Bluebelt comprises more than 14,000 acres and can temporarily hold and filter as much as 350,000 gallons of rainfall. 

How does Citygreen Implement and Manage Stormwater Projects?

Over the past three decades, Citygreen has made significant investments in stormwater infrastructure projects. We learnt early on that mimicking natural systems to manage rainfall, is the most cost-effectively way to deal with stormwater runoff.

An example of a green infrastructure design that Citygreen has developed is the Strataflow™ system.  Instead of a traditional bioretention basin, Citygreen’s Strataflow™ uses an underground structural soil vault system, which delivers a high standard of stormwater treatment with a completely natural look. To any passer-by, what you see is a healthy, flourishing tree surrounded by a grassy verge, but beneath the ground is an advanced WSUD(water sensitive urban design). 

This design starts with a traditional drain or catch basin or the Strataflow Kerb Inlet; this device sits in the road kerb alignment, retaining the inherent structure of the concrete kerb. The inlet has a grate (acting as a screen) to stop larger-sized pollutants from entering the system, which inhibits healthy tree growth. 

The inlet lets water from the road carriageway flow through the front grate of the drain at a capacity of up to 18 litres/ 5 gallons per second. This allows the inlet to minimise pollutants entering waterways and reduce flood risks by controlling the stormwater flow entering our city’s underground drains. 

When the water flows through the street, it enters through the inlet and flows underground. From there, the stormwater reaches the advanced structural soil cell system, where the stormwater is stored, filtered and distributed effectively for the benefit of urban trees and proper stormwater management.

The inlet ensures the water drains down at the correct optimal depth beneath the pavement height. From there, the stormwater reaches the structural soil cell system and the tree’s root system, where the stormwater is stored, cleaned and distributed effectively to increase urban tree growth and proper stormwater management principles.

Essentially, Strataflow™ utilises readily available stormwater rather than potable water to irrigate street trees, which improves the vitality of trees and reduces the impact of stormwater and stormwater contaminants on the local environment, all while maintaining a high natural presentation. 

Stormwater Management Case Study

Pemberton is a small mountain town located 20 minutes North of world-renowned ski resort Whistler in Beautiful British Columbia, Canada.

In 2019 the town of Pemberton was awarded a government grant to upgrade ageing infrastructure and give their tourist town a facelift. Pemberton had some issues with flooding which they were keen to fix and at the same time wanted to create an inviting and enjoyable experience for the visitors and residents of the town.

One of the solutions was the Stratavault system, this system was placed underneath all sidewalks for two reasons. The first was to collect the mass of snow run off and rainfall that would typically flood the town, slow this water down and clean it with the soil held in the Stratavault system then push excess water into a nearby pond where it could be used for irrigation purposes throughout the town. The second was to hold enough soil so the trees that were planted in urban environments could have access to nutrient-rich soil for many years to come.

Book a Citygreen Consultant

Looking for a cost-effective and sustainable stormwater solution? Contact our friendly Citygreen Team today.

Our impressions of a city are formed mainly by the quality of public spaces. If they are not pleasant and preserved, or if they transmit a sense of insecurity, we will seldom return. Good planning of these spaces should be the rule, not the exception. In the series “Public Spaces,” originally published in Portuguese by TheCityFix Brasil, we explore different aspects related to public spaces that determine our daily experience in cities.

Nothing lasts forever without conservation and preservation. With cities, it’s no different. Different interventions in cities can alter built-up areas or public spaces to address social issues, environment or health problems, or even reactivate the local economy. In this context, the practices of urban renewal, requalification, revitalization and rehabilitation can be used to not only renew a city but help proactively solve a wide range of problems.

First, we need to differentiate terms that are often used synonymously but do not have exactly the same meaning. Briefly, “revitalization” is about recovering space or an existing construction; “renewal” deals with replacing or rebuilding and changing use; “requalifying” adds new functions while improving the appearance, and “rehabilitation” is restoring but without changing function. Each of these processes, therefore, generates different results. All of them, however, are linked to the same idea: to transform urban spaces in order to rejuvenate them.

Projects like these often arise from the need to solve economic, social or environmental issues, but are carried out in ways that make success difficult. They need community participation to be embraced but are often instead led by public-private partnerships that have few feedback mechanisms for community members to engage with. This is one of the most common criticisms of this type of intervention, in which large projects are conceived and constructed without any connection to the local reality.

New models of urban transformation should recognize that transformative change is no longer the responsibility of a single actor, organization, institution or sector. Change needs to be led by multi-stakeholder coalitions and movements, on the demand side as well as the supply side.

A report by the Australia-based consulting firm SGS Economics and Planning presents 10 principles for urban renewal that take the public interest into account, based on case studies in cities like London, Sydney, Melbourne, Hamburg and New York. According to the survey, much of the criticisms of urban renewal projects are a result of actions undertaken without the perspective and contribution of affected communities. Finding ways to include more participation could improve success rates. The report focuses mainly on renewal; however, the principles also apply to revitalization, requalification and rehabilitation:

1. Create “Shared Value”

Urban areas do not belong to a single group or individual but should offer value to many actors. All those who are part of the broader community as a whole – from workers and tourists, children and students, to the underserved and investors – should benefit from urban renewal. “Ultimately, the ‘communities’ for whom the value is created to share, should be those with long-term interests, not transient stakeholders with a primary focus on value extraction and repatriation,” write the authors.

2. Plan With Input From All

Delivering this shared value requires engaging with communities. Planners bringing an intervention into an existing space should share their vision and include people in the planning from day one, or risk it being rejected. Decision-making techniques such as cost-benefit analysis should be explained and employed to also promote “non-financial values,” helping communities feel a sense of ownership. The researchers also suggest the creation of a common platform where information about the process and the progress of the project can be shared transparently.

3. Build a Long-Term Vision

In any extensive process of urban renewal, the initial goals of the project may change over time. Even so, a long-term vision should be locked in and changes for the sake of short-terms gains resisted, with flexibility growing as the timeline extends further into the future. “A commitment to the public interest and shared value needs an inclusive approach, and future development stages should have the flexibility to be able to adapt to market and social changes,” write the authors.

4. Agree on Non-Negotiables

Non-negotiation issues should be clearly understood by all stakeholders. These could include respecting existing lease terms, fixed quotas for affordable housing or protecting open spaces. The rights of renters and leaseholders should be guaranteed and stakeholders agree to a common set of design standards.

5. Agree on a Financial Profile

Studying how the space to be renovated is expected to yield from a financial perspective not only serves to set parameters for the project’s development options but is also critical to whether the public’s interests will be met. There are many options available to both provide returns on government investment in underserved areas but also safeguard communities from potential negative side effects, like rising taxes, and encourage a handoff to private developers in the future.

6. Establish Clear Development Goals

The planning process should develop and affirm clear objectives, not just desired outcomes. The best goals will be specific and measurable and anticipate the physical, economic and social results of the project.

7. Establish Options to Achieve Development Goals

There are often multiple options for achieving the same development goals and they should be compared to one another as well as to baseline scenarios of what might happen without any intervention. The process will create “a much clearer picture of marginal benefits and costs associated with any particular development option,” the report explains.

8. Incorporate a Sense of “Localness”

Local characteristics and peculiarities should be captured and incorporated into the new project. These details may come from local standards, services offered in the region, the environment, the climate or other socio-cultural specificities. Finding ways to assimilate a sense of the local into the project will help people identify with it, separate it from other similar projects and generate community acceptance.

9. Evaluate Options With the Goal of Maximizing Net Community Benefits

Cost-benefit analyses are often viewed with scepticism, but the report notes there are well-documented techniques that allow for the inclusion of things communities care about most, like open space, social capital and heritage. Finding ways to incorporate them into a cost-benefit analysis is important for avoiding the scenario where “financial considerations or otherwise vague community aims to end up dominating choices between options.”

10. Align the Procurement Model With the Planning Vision

Finally, the governance, implementation and contracting trajectories – how the project is actually carried out – should align with the unique vision laid out during the planning phase. Procurement targets should bespoke, rather than using “off-the-shelf” options. This may mean a greater role for the government as a developer in the early stages before handing off to private sector developers later.

“These principles are not locked in place but are guiding principles to ensure urban renewal benefits the widest community possible,” write the authors. “The renewal of strategically important urban sites must have the needs of communities, both social and commercial, at its core.”

At Citygreen Our vision is to create a sustainable world where Green Space is within reach of every person, every day. Urban renewal is core to helping achieve this vision.

Source: https://thecityfix.com/ Paula Tanscheit is the Communications Analyst for WRI Brasil Sustainable Cities.

Independent groups take action in light of Auckland’s urban forest crisis:

10-step ‘How to Grow an Urban Forest’ Guidebook:

In an Australian first, a 10-step guidebook on growing urban forests in order to reduce temperatures in cities has been launched in Melbourne during an urban forest masterclass involving 200+ urban planners, arborists, and land managers. Supported by the Melbourne City Council and the Victorian Government, the 10-step “How to grow an urban forest” guide has been created to give local councils the tools they need to increase urban greenery.

Launched as part of the 202020 Vision, the guide was inspired by Melbourne’s commitment to plant 3000 trees every year to help cool the city. It includes a vast array of information including the benefits of heat mapping, how to assess your assets, and useful interviews with experienced councilors.

Arron Wood, Chair of the Melbourne Council’s Environment Portfolio, said, “…urban forests have the potential to reduce the severity of heatwaves, which have claimed hundreds of lives in other parts of the world. So these beautiful trees that you walk past in the street and think ‘aren’t they lovely’ and ‘you provide me with nice shade’, literally they could save your life one day.”

One of the key messages is the guide is that of diversity. Mr Wood said, “With diversity you get greater resilience, you’re not going to get a disease that wipes out a single species and changes the whole look of your urban forest. It’s also good for biodiversity because you’re bringing the flowering plants, the native plants and that really is about bringing good biology and good ecology back into the city.”

The guidebook is available for download at https://202020vision.com.au/media/41948/urban-forest-strategy-workbook.pdf.

Retail Landscaping, The New Experience:

When thinking about creating a retail environment that stimulates shoppers’ spending habits and experiences, flashy branding and aesthetically pleasing displays make a lot of sense, but what if there was something a little less expected, and yet so much more naturally nurturing and powerful to the human experience?

In decades before today, city dwellers expelled themselves from the urban environment, seeking out the less congested neighborhoods of the suburbs, and all shopping needs being addressed by the enclosed, glass, metal, and stone of department stores and malls.

Coinciding with this sociological shift, research has been conducted since the 1970’s investigating the need and benefit of nature as part of the daily human experience. One of the overriding pieces of evidence shows that environments featuring greenery and natural elements are, “… consistently preferred over non-green urban settings, or environments dominated by artefacts,” (Joye, et al. 2010).

In keeping with those studied benefits, landscape infrastructure is no longer as simple as planting plants to give a more affluent, manicured aesthetic, but a tool to build better urban spaces, “from the layout of streets, sidewalks, plazas, and buildings to outdoor natural features and amenities that are iconic and in tune with cultural, social, and environmental uniqueness,” says Randall Shearin of Shopping Center Business.

Given the shift in the human experience’s needs, people have begun to seek out establishments and areas that aren’t just purely for retail, but also opportunities to have stimulation on a social and personal, internal level.

Appropriately, design firms and investors have responded by renovating existing traditional mall formats to open-air venues and town centers, like the City Creek Center in downtown Salt Lake City. Places like this give specific attention to the original environment they are built around, or in. In this case, large trees and a creek create a natural traffic pattern that allows the space to feel as though it was an original part of the landscape anyways, as if the town center itself grew as part of the landscape.

These open-air venues turn people who were primarily customers visiting specific businesses into community members who took ownership of the space. This seems like this rich, green, urban oasis could only be benefitting those patrons who visit the developments, but not so.

“Having a tenant in front of the main square is like having a retailer at center court in the mall; tenants want to be along those public spaces,” says Yaromir Steiner, CEO of Steiner + Associates, a leading developer of mixed-use environments. “The square attracts people. Kids can play in the fountain; adults can go to the farmer’s market or listen to concerts. It builds traffic.”

By visiting mixed-use environments that give, “experiences and places for shoppers to enhance — and increase — their visits,” says Shearin, they offer different venues to create a similar convenience of online shopping, a hard thing to compete with, until now. Simultaneously, environments are designed where people seek an experience that enhances and enriches their daily lives, local economy is stimulated and supported, and thereby creating a natural and mutually beneficial balance between the man-made, and nature’s best offerings.

(more…)

AILA puts Focus on Green Spaces for Schools:

The Australian Institute of Landscape Architects (AILA) has teamed up with the University of Canberra (UC) and Torrens Primary School in the ACT to completely overhaul a courtyard located in the centre of the school.

Concerned about the lack of funding for outdoor environments in schools, AILA Chief Executive, Shahana McKenzie, said this is a pilot project for a national competition to be launched in September, with the aim to highlight the benefits of quality green spaces in urban areas – including schools.

Ms McKenzie said, “Children spent 20 per cent of their time outdoors when they’re at school. But unfortunately there isn’t 20 per cent of funding going from facilities’ funding to the outdoor environment.”

AILA National President, Mark Frisby, said he would like to see government funding increased for outdoor spaces. “It is one of the most effective ways to address growing community issues such as obesity and mental health, and it requires significantly less investment than constructing new buildings,” he said.

The project kicked off with a workshop involving 30 students from the school, and UC landscape architecture students. Landscape architecture student, Christopher Norris, said the students’ passion for their school was obvious during the workshop, including their insistence on using school colours.

Unfortunately, grand ideas such as chocolate fountains, water slides, and a rollercoaster did not make the cut. But many suggestions did, including a grass mound, a multi-level concert stage, a water feature for science education, and an outdoor lunch space for teachers. Torrens Primary School principal, Sue Mueller, said the new space would contribute to the learning and wellbeing of current and future generations of students.

The courtyard is expected to be completed by October 2016. Stay tuned for more information on the upcoming national competition.

image credit . The Canberra Times . Graham Tidy

ArborGuy Plants the Seeds to Success for Urban Landscapes:

Trees are complicated beings. They have specific needs, and require conducive environments in order to flourish and grow. Citygreen® acknowledges this fact, and with their wide range of products, they are innovating the way trees are planted. One of these products includes the ArborGuy, a system that is hopefully replacing tree staking entirely in both urban and rural environments.

The ArborGuy is best suited for root ball trees, and eliminates damage to the root ball that can otherwise occur with typical tree staking practices. The kit includes strapped anchor systems with drive ins, heavy duty composite anchors, a webbing strap and rachet tensioner. In the event of underground utilities in the vicinity of the planting, a “deadman”guying system with 3 heavy timbers is included.

“Once installed, each one of the three Arborguy ground anchors can withstand up to 1340 kilos of upward force… If required, the system can be re­tensioned at a later date.”

Part of the strength of this system is the use of a subterranean triangular configuration, in comparison to a tree staking, which features 1­2 stakes driven into the ground, and ties which cut into the tree trunk over time. Because this system is entirely subterranean, the finished look is a healthy, secured tree growing from the earth, devoid of stakes and ties jutting up around each trunk.

“…Improper tree staking replaces a supportive trunk and root system with an artificial support that causes the tree to put its resources into growing taller but not growing wider.” The result is a smaller trunk susceptible to breakage or uprooting in storm conditions: an undesirable and avoidable expense.

With smarter planting, we can have smarter futures with less expense, and more healthy trees.