Grantee Research Project Results

2016 Progress Report: Taking it to the Streets: Green Infrastructure for Sustainable Philadelphia Communities

EPA Grant Number: R835558
Title: Taking it to the Streets: Green Infrastructure for Sustainable Philadelphia Communities
Investigators: Ballestero, Thomas P
Institution: University of New Hampshire
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: October 1, 2013 through September 30, 2017 (Extended to September 30, 2020)
Project Period Covered by this Report: October 1, 2015 through September 30,2016
Project Amount: $992,759
RFA: Performance and Effectiveness of Green Infrastructure Stormwater Management Approaches in the Urban Context: A Philadelphia Case Study (2012) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Watersheds , Water

Objective:

This project proposes to build municipal capacity in the greater Philadelphia urban watersheds for Green Infrastructure (GI) by engaging local and regional stakeholders in a planning and implementation process that is supported by science-based resources and up-to-date relevant technical information. This will be accomplished by: 1) forming and working with multi-sector project advisors who will help guide the implementation of the project goals with the project partners; 2) increasing municipal familiarity with the design, construction, and maintenance of GI practices through the installation of high impact, high-visibility demonstration projects; 3) increasing municipal capacity to implement GI by identifying existing social / economic / knowledge / technical barriers and prioritization of strategies; 4) developing partnerships within and between government and other stakeholders in the City; 5) clear tracking of green jobs and job opportunities associated with GI implementation; and 6) targeting outreach and dissemination of technical and informational resources through identified and prioritized approaches.

Progress Summary:

During the performance period, designs for six different stormwater systems at the Chester Arthur Elementary School were finalized, reviewed by Philadelphia Water Department, and approved. The systems were installed in the summer of 2016 and monitoring commenced in the fall of 2016. Data are being collected, shared, and synthesized in collaboration with Chester Arthur faculty and students. Design concepts at 16 other elementary schools in north and south Philadelphia are ongoing in collaboration with landscape architecture students from Iowa State University and University of Colorado-Denver.

Three systems were built on the University of New Hampshire campus and continue to be monitored. Some of these monitoring data were used in development of the EPA Region 1 Opti-Tool, which estimates the water quality performance of fully sized (one-inch water quality volume), undersized, and oversized systems. The data also are used to calibrate the infiltration function in the Storm Water Managment Model (SWMM).

Future Activities:

Monitoring of Philadelphia and New Hampshire systems will continue, with emphasis in more accurately estimating infiltration while in the design phase of projects. Collaborating elementary school design concepts will move forward to the Stormwater Management Incentives Program applications where local interest exists. SWMM modeling of individual green infrastructure systems will be moved to the subwatershed scale to understand the hydrologic effects of more numerous undersized systems compared to fewer “right-sized” systems.

Journal Articles on this Report : 1 Displayed | Download in RIS Format

Publications Views
Other project views:	All 44 publications	1 publications in selected types	All 1 journal articles

Publications
Type	Citation	Project	Document Sources
Journal Article	Houle J, Ballestero T, Puls TA. The performance analysis of two relatively small capacity urban retrofit stormwater controls. Journal of Water Management Modeling 2017;25:C417.	R835558 (2016) R835558 (Final)	Full-text: JWMM-Full Text HTML Exit Abstract: JWMM-Abstract Exit Other: JWMM-Full Text PDF Exit

Supplemental Keywords:

Stormwater, Philadelphia

Relevant Websites:

UNH Stormwater Center Exit
Arthur Elementary playground to Transform into Outdoor Learning Lab | Friends of Chester Arthur Exit

Progress and Final Reports:

Original Abstract

The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.