Impact/Purpose:

The primary goal of the project is to design a comprehensive blueprint for working with issues related to stormwater management on a community/grassroots level that will target pressing concerns in the realm of water quality and quantity improvement. In this case, designs will be applied to locations that are traditionally not considered ideal candidates for such improvements because of their urban setting. Water quantity and quality will be improved by designing and implementing accepted stormwater management techniques, namely engineered stormwater best management practices (BMPs), in an effort to meet New Jersey’s Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NJPDES), Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) and Stormwater Management Rule requirements. More specifically, this project will design a community process for addressing stormwater management practices in a low-income urban community to reduce NPS pollution by transforming vacant lots into socially beneficial open spaces.

Description:

This project addresses issues related to water quality and quantity in New Jersey’s urbanized watersheds and targets the need for improved environmental quality as a form of prosperity for the people in low-income urban communities.

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Designs for engineered BMPs will be created for specific sites within an urban community identified through coordination with the participating community organization. The basic idea is to prevent pollutants from entering the existing stormwater system (and ultimately, receiving water bodies), to retain pollutants where they can be more easily managed, and to increase infiltration and detention to reduce peak stormwater flows. Engineering and landscape architecture students from Rutgers University will interact with community members from the very beginning of the design process to envision the scope of the design problem together. The design plan will be developed by the students under the direction of Rutgers faculty and a teaching assistant. The project will partner with stakeholders at Rutgers, non-governmental organizations, and local government.

Designs for engineered BMPs will be created for specific sites within an urban community identified through coordination with the participating community organization. The basic idea is to prevent pollutants from entering the existing stormwater system (and ultimately, receiving water bodies), to retain pollutants where they can be more easily managed, and to increase infiltration and detention to reduce peak stormwater flows. Engineering and landscape architecture students from Rutgers University will interact with community members from the very beginning of the design process to envision the scope of the design problem together. The design plan will be developed by the students under the direction of Rutgers faculty and a teaching assistant. The project will partner with stakeholders at Rutgers, non-governmental organizations, and local government.

Designs for engineered BMPs will be created for specific sites within an urban community identified through coordination with the participating community organization. The basic idea is to prevent pollutants from entering the existing stormwater system (and ultimately, receiving water bodies), to retain pollutants where they can be more easily managed, and to increase infiltration and detention to reduce peak stormwater flows. Engineering and landscape architecture students from Rutgers University will interact with community members from the very beginning of the design process to envision the scope of the design problem together. The design plan will be developed by the students under the direction of Rutgers faculty and a teaching assistant. The project will partner with stakeholders at Rutgers, non-governmental organizations, and local government.

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