Modernizing Stormwater Programs through Digital Transformation

Stormwater programs throughout the US rely heavily on diverse data types to support resource allocation, regulatory reporting, and prioritization decisions, but they often struggle to use those data to measure program effectiveness or guide decision making. Common challenges include identifying the best implementation opportunities, quantifying progress, and maximizing multiple water resource benefits. We present a rationale, a method, and software application for quantifying benefits associated with distributed green infrastructure implementation. The method is strongly grounded in granular spatial representation of urban landscapes to align with the scale of information needs required by stormwater practitioners. Our solution integrates green infrastructure asset management and pollutant modeling to provide ongoing quantification of program benefits and a basis for treating stormwater as a resource, rather than a nuisance (e.g. see The CA Stormwater Opportunity ). Outputs help communities prioritize green infrastructure implementation, promote urban conservation, educate the public on stormwater issues. Increasing urban populations and a changing climate will bring more intense and frequent storms, so every investment in green stormwater infrastructure builds climate change resiliency into cities. Distributed green infrastructure reduces flooding risks, recharges groundwater aquifers, filters pollutants, reduces urban heat island effects, and promotes community stewardship. The capacity for robust and efficient quantification of these benefits opens opportunities for partnership development, community engagement, and acceleration of investment. These outcomes are dependent on cities having the right tools in place that bring transparency and accountability to stormwater program decision making, and allows them to communicate the value of investments to stakeholders. 2NDNATURE has been working with 40 communities throughout California and the Chesapeake Bay Watershed to implement a comprehensive geospatial stormwater management platform and in 2019 initiated a partnership with The Nature Conservancy to bring technical assistance to a wider range of communities across the country to improve transparency and effectiveness of their stormwater programs . A case study in the City of Salinas, CA illustrates the transformation of a stormwater program with an information management overhaul, dramatically improving their capacity to plan, communicate and demonstrate the value of green stormwater infrastructure implementation.