True Integrated Planning - Using Clean Water Act Investments to Transform a Cincinnati Community

摘要

Integrated Planning is an approach promoted by the USEPA for identifying projects that can address overlapping stormwater and wastewater regulations under the Clean Water Act (CWA) and will lead to efficient investment in infrastructure. When faced with a United States Environmental Protection Agency Consent Decree (Consent Decree), estimated to cost $3.1 Billion, the Metropolitan Sewer District of Greater Cincinnati (MSDGC) looked toward integrating planning for a way to do more than just address consent decree requirements and stormwater quality. MSDGC sought to develop a truly integrated plan that could also leverage the infrastructure investment towards revitalization of local communities that would be paying for the infrastructure. The initial plan proposed for partial implementation under the Consent Decree was a deep tunnel that buried investment dollars in an invisible, underground facility that only addressed CSO control through temporary storage of combined sewage. MSDGC investigated alternative opportunities for CSO control by reviewing watershed and community needs in the core area around the deep tunnel project and identified a combination of grey and green infrastructure projects that achieve stated requirements of the Consent Decree. The alternative projects were proposed to do this at a lower overall cost than the originally proposed tunnel solution and also incorporated MSDGC's goals of integrating stormwater quality and local community benefits. A major portion of the alternative project approach included a suite of projects within the Lick Run watershed. The foundation of the proposed Lick Run Wet Weather Strategy was one of implementing strategic sewer separation by integrating both grey and green infrastructure at the source of the runoff. The strategy includes managing separated stormwater through a combination of detention basins to manage stormwater quality and quantity with a hybrid grey and green conveyance system that incorporates green infrastructure practices in the core of the South Fairmont community. These features will provide a benefit to the community and serve as a catalyst for attracting redevelopment. The projects were planned and designed with the input and approval from the local South Fairmont community. MSDGC has completed 8 of the 12 major projects included in the Lick Run Wet Weather Strategy with the remaining four projects under construction. Upon completion, the suite of projects in the Lick Run watershed will reduce typical year CSO overflow volume by nearly 400 million gallons through the construction of grey and green infrastructure that includes benefits such as 9,900 feet of natural stream restoration; wetlands, bioswales, and stormwater basins planted with colorful native species in community-accessible spaces; and 5,600 feet of a daylighted stream through the corridor of a public space that has begun the redevelopment of a Cincinnati community. The projects in the Lick Run watershed are a demonstration of true integrated planning coming to reality: investing money required for addressing stormwater and wastewater requirements under the Clean Water Act in a manner that integrates benefits for local communities.