if rainfall is especially high, the surge of water into a traditional stormwater system can cause overflows. this is especially problematic as in many cities, including syracuse, stormwater is combined with sewage water. when these stormwater systems overflow, both sewage and stormwater is spilled into nearby creeks and lakes. between the months of january and august in 2017, the city of syracuse boasted 50 combined sewer overflows.

this likely doesn’t come as a surprise to those familiar with syracuse’s environmental history. the city has struggled with issues of water pollution and environmental justice for decades, a situation complicated by formidable social and economic issues facing the city.

a place called skunk city

skunk city is one of many places commonly affected by combined sewer overflows.  located on the west side of syracuse, the neighborhood received its unique name from the abnormal number of skunks in the area. skunk city has long been defined as a working-class neighborhood, but recent economic hardships and suburbanization have depleted the population and left the area largely disenfranchised. a profile of the neighborhood published by the city listed median household income as less than $20,000, far below the median for both the entire syracuse metro area and onondaga county.

the report additionally notes that the vacancy rate has been “growing for decades,” mirroring a greater trend in the syracuse area. a 2012 survey found more than 3,500 vacant parcels in the city of syracuse, many located in disadvantaged neighborhoods like skunk city. as well as being visually displeasing, vacant lots can lead to decreased property values in the area and may be targeted as sites of crime and arson.

beyond the social issues faced by skunk city, the stormwater management practices in the area have long been unsatisfactory. sewer overflows are common and many residents note that their roads and household basements are more prone to flooding than other areas.

the green infrastructure project

stormwater management and vacant lots may seem unrelated, but a study being conducted at syracuse university and the state university of new york college of environmental sciences and forestry (suny-esf), in conjunction with atlantic states legal foundation is linking the two issues. the team has focused their attention on the recent greenifying of city infrastructure, in particular, more environmentally sustainable ways to manage increased stormwater runoff. over the next few months the team, which includes elizabeth vidon, mary collins, christa kelleher, lauren tarr, and crystal burgess, will be studying how the installation of rain gardens affect the biophysical and social conditions of skunk city.

traditionally, “gray infrastructure” has been used in syracuse to manage stormwater. this method includes traditional wastewater treatment plants and water storage facilities and often has created environmental justice issues for disadvantaged communities.

“having a sewage plant next to you — it gives off a smell and it just gives neighborhoods, especially disadvantaged neighborhoods, a lower quality of life,” says burgess, a graduate student working on the project. “green infrastructure is working toward having a more natural system, a more beautifying system that also treats water.”

green infrastructure seeks to create solutions by mimicking natural processes. rain gardens capture rainwater before it enters drains and pipes, decreasing the probability of a sewer overflow. in addition, chemical reactions taking place in the soil clean the water of many pollutants before it is cycled back into creeks and lakes.

beyond water

“everything that happens in the city is very directly related to human impacts and human values. and, so it doesn’t make sense to have environmental projects that don’t consult the humans that are a part of this environment,” says tarr, a doctoral student working on the project. the green infrastructure project reflects this perspective and distinguishes itself from similar ecological engineering projects by combining a traditional biophysical research approach with a social science perspective.

“the goal is to create an adaptive management approach,” tarr says. she has been conducting surveys with community members in skunk city. “that way, as the project goes on, it can be changed based on what’s working for the actual people living next to (the rain gardens).”

the researchers hope that the project will foster a voice that outlives their presence in the community.

“this may be like a jumpstart,” burgess says. “they get involved in these rain gardens, they’re going to want to be involved in the new store being built down the street. it just lets them know that they can have a say, a voice over what happens in their community.”

tarr agrees: “i would hope that…the community can feel like they’re being heard and see the impacts, see their voice represented in what’s happening in these lots, so that even if the community itself no longer legally owns the lot, it still is reflexive of what their values are.”

while the green infrastructure project addresses the area of hydrology, it also directly addresses the environmental justice issues that have plagued syracuse for generations and paves a sustainable path for the future of syracuse and other metropolitan areas.

it ends with a community

the green infrastructure project is still in its beginning stages, but the results already are promising. the first rain gardens are currently scheduled to be installed in april of this year, and both tarr and burgess are enthusiastic about the future of the project. with any luck, the coming spring showers will encourage the growth of these new rain gardens, and allow skunk city, and the realm of stormwater management to grow with them.

as a student of suny esf, i had seen examples of green infrastructure around campus and became curious about its form and function. after doing a little research, i quickly realized that there was way more to the story of green infrastructure than what originally met my eye. this local success story seemed like an excellent way to communicate the need for green infrastructure and demonstrate its viability for future use. 

special thanks to save the rain and suny esf outreach for some of the great photographs and resources used in the making of this project.       

the watershed’s recovery in recent years is largely thanks to save the rain, a unique stormwater management program initiated in 2009 by onondaga county executive joanne “joanie” mahoney. by combining green solutions and community engagement with traditional water treatment methods, save the rain has put syracuse on the cutting edge of a growing movement of environmentally conscious water management across the nation.

the problem

during syracuse’s industrial-era development, onondaga lake was hit with a double blow, becoming a dumping ground for industrial chemical waste as well as sewage from the city. this traditional sacred site for the onondaga nation and 19th century tourist attraction was declared unfit for swimming by 1940, and fishing was banned in 1972. even after industrial dumping was halted, the problem of sewage remained; it was built into the city itself.

syracuse is one of about 770 cities in the united states with a combined sewer system (css), project coordinator madison quinn told planet forward. this means that the storm sewer and sanitary sewer systems combine underground. wastewater from homes and businesses mixes with rainwater, and it’s all treated together. this design, now outdated, was typical of the time when syracuse’s infrastructure was installed, and its inherent drawbacks plague many cities today.

“on a dry day, we have more than enough capacity to carry everything in the sewer, but when you have a sudden inflow of storm water, you really can overwhelm the system,” quinn said.

during this sort of event, called a combined sewer overflow (cso), the css is designed to spill the excess untreated water into local waterways that lead to the lake. the continual pollution from this type of overflow led to a 1989 federal consent judgment mandating that onondaga county upgrade its water treatment plant and prevent csos from occurring.

a novel approach

mahoney entered office in 2008 on the platform that there was a better way to solve the cso problem than the one that had been proposed. she halted construction of three water treatment plants and took the case back to court. the result was an amended consent judgment, and, in 2009, the official birth of save the rain.

traditional methods for water treatment typically consist solely of “gray” infrastructure: treatment plants, pipes, pumps, and the like. save the rain takes a different approach, combining smaller improvements on gray infrastructure with a variety of “green” infrastructure projects, such as rain gardens and green roofs, which capture rainfall during storms and prevent it from going into the sewers to begin with.

“it’s really about holding the water during the storm, and not releasing it into the sewer during that heavy flow period,” quinn said.

this is the key to preventing overflow events.

the 189 green infrastructure projects save the rain has completed to date capture 96.2% of cso volume — far ahead of its mandated goal of 95% capture by 2018 — and reduce total runoff by 123 million gallons every year.

saving money the green way

save the rain isn’t just a new, greener strategy — it has proven cheaper and more practical to implement than alternative gray infrastructure.

in quinn’s words: “it’s a misconception when people say you can be either environmentally friendly or cost effective.”

halting the construction of the three proposed treatment plants and instead implementing numerous green infrastructure projects has saved the county an estimated $20 million in capital alone, she said.

not only that, green infrastructure takes significantly less money and energy to maintain than gray infrastructure. it relies much more heavily on passive, gravity-powered processes and less active pumping. according to a 2014 analysis by the county’s green program manager, save the rain saves the county $225,000 in maintenance costs each year, and 51,510 kwh of energy.

building community while saving the rain

unlike a water treatment plant, save the rain has a positive impact that is easy to see when walking the city streets. rain gardens replace vacant lots. a huge green roof tops the oncenter, a downtown convention center and entertainment complex. parks are getting new basketball courts with porous pavement that absorbs water while reducing noises. a variety of green installations allow the capture of nearly all the rain that falls on the local rosamond gifford zoo.

the community has taken note, and is getting involved and giving back. save the rain hosts tree-planting events and gives away rain barrels so citizens can collect rainfall to water their plants or wash their car. it also has a partnership with onondaga earth corps, a local organization dedicated to educating youth to foster the next generation of environmentalists. the collaboration between the two organizations has resulted in between 500 and 900 trees being planted annually by local youth, according to oec program coordinator adrienne canino. in the realm of urban forestry, which is one of oec’s areas of focus, this is no small feat. through projects such as these, both ends of the partnership enjoy the benefits of working together.

“it’s really exciting to have people engaged in this,” quinn says.

the community’s involvement in caring for their environment and water was one of the first goals set forth by mahoney and, quinn believes, is the key to the program’s success.

a model city

the status quo for stormwater and cso management has changed since 2009. according to quinn, more recent consent judgments in other cities require from the get-go the green infrastructure that mahoney had to revisit court for permission to use in syracuse.

the approach taken in syracuse, one of the first of its kind, worked. the city has transformed from an epicenter of pollution to an environmental pioneer. and people are taking notice.

in 2011, the epa named the city a green infrastructure partner community, holding it as an example of how to effectively implement green infrastructure, and onondaga county received the u.s. water prize in 2013.

all these successes don’t mean that save the rain is done, though. though the lake may never be the pristine body of water it once was, it has potential to recover further. for the sake of the watershed and the benefit of the city, save the rain is still churning out new projects.

said quinn: “we want to continue to improve water quality and there are still a lot of areas with a lot of impervious surface, a lot of paved areas, and we want to add more green space.”

the d.c. office of planning released the 36-page “van ness commercial district action plan” on nov. 12 in an effort to guide the neighborhood toward a more sustainable and family-friendly future. the plan includes over 30 goals for the area, a handful of which could go into effect as soon as next year, with others following over the next five to ten years.

“the van ness commercial district has the potential to improve its retail offerings and public space while showcasing world class sustainability measures by leveraging its substantial daytime population, accessibility, and the well-established surrounding neighborhoods,” the plan states.

the proposal is highly focused on creating a cohesive streetscape for the area by improving lands caping and creating gathering places along the largely empty connecticut avenue sidewalks. expanded treeboxes serve as an added buffer between pedestrians and traffic and, along with permeable pavement, create a stormwater management system which catches rainwater before it runs off.

at the same time, the plan hopes to bring a diversity of retailers to the neighborhood, including clothing shops and casual dining locations that are suitable for both families and students.

the university of the district of columbia is already adding to the area, with the construction of a new student center that the report says will be an attractive space for the entire community, as well as the redevelopment of the school’s law building. meanwhile, the park van ness building, at 4455 connecticut ave., will deliver 273 apartment units and 9,000 square feet of ground-floor retail when completed in 2016.

some of the plan’s short-term goals include new artwork along connecticut avenue, high-efficiency led streetlamps and a public recycling program, all implemented over the next two to five years.

the plan emphasizes van ness’ role as a commercial center along metro’s red line with potential to attract visitors from all over the district.

“a repositioned commercial district will redefine the community as an energetic, lush place that attracts new customers and allows residents, students, and workers to come together,” the plan says.

(editor’s note: this piece originally appeared in the eagle online.)

those who drink contaminated water are more susceptible to waterborne diseases that put hundreds of thousands of people in hospitals each year. more than half of waterborne disease outbreaks have followed extreme rainfalls. think about that the next time you drink a glass of tap water. sustainable development can help contain stormwater runoff.

gw’s square 80 plaza has done just that. the site has several features, including biofiltration planters, which help capture 100 percent of trespassing stormwater. unfortunately, not enough places like square 80 exist. d.c. stormwater runoff levels have risen 34 percent over the last 30 years. disturbing, huh? how can we expect to drink from safer water when we continue to feed our watersheds with deadly toxins? let’s push harder to reverse this trend.

eric osman is a senior at the george washington university majoring in journalism and mass communication with a minor in economics.