You are here:
Decision-Support Tools and Databases to Inform Regional Stormwater Utility Development in New England
Citation:
Detenbeck, N., A. Morrison, J. Morgan, V. Zoltay, R. Abele, J. LeClair, AND T. Garrigan. Decision-Support Tools and Databases to Inform Regional Stormwater Utility Development in New England. Regional Stormwater Utility Workshop, Chelmsford, MA, March 25, 2015.
Impact/Purpose:
Development of stormwater utilities requires information on existing stormwater infrastructure and impervious cover as well as costs and benefits of stormwater management options. US EPA has developed a suite of databases and tools that can inform decision-making by regional stormwater utilities in New England.
Description:
Development of stormwater utilities requires information on existing stormwater infrastructure and impervious cover as well as costs and benefits of stormwater management options. US EPA has developed a suite of databases and tools that can inform decision-making by regional stormwater utilities in New England. We have developed and applied cost-effective and accurate methods for mapping and updating impervious cover in Vermont and Rhode Island using low-cost high resolution NAIP imagery and genetic algorithms (GeniePro software). We have mapped and compiled a database of existing green infrastructure stormwater BMPs across New England which will be publically available. Finally, we have developed the Watershed Management and Optimization Support Tool (WMOST), which allows utilities to explore the costs and benefits of various stormwater management options within an Integrated Water Resource Management framework. Version 2 of WMOST will have enhanced features, including access to a database of hydrologic model inputs spanning a 50-year climatic record and multiple watersheds across New England, a module to estimate stormwater BMP performance and costs for selected scenarios, a flooding module to evaluate risks and costs associated with peak flows, and a climate variability module to allow stakeholders to assess optimal management practices for average, wet and dry years. Assessment of costs and benefits associated with water resource management options can be used to evaluate tradeoffs among options and can also provide information to support various financing options, including public-private partnerships. For example, the Center for Neighborhood Technology has teamed up with an insurance agency and nonprofit agency funding sustainable solutions to provide Chicago residents with wet weather retrofitting approaches, tools, and services, creating a replicable one‐stop service that “Wetrofits” properties and neighborhoods prone to frequent flooding.