SFEI collaborated with the San Francisco Estuary Partnership and San Mateo Countywide Water Pollution Prevention Program to monitor the effectiveness of Low Impact Design elements constructed at the Gellert Park/Serramonte Main Branch Library in Daly City.

Green Infill – Clean Stormwater will demonstrate a way forward for those who think urbanism and environmental protection cannot coexist. In Southern California, TreePeople found that green development can help restore a normal stream hydrograph, reduce pollutant loading, and support ecosystem functions. Portland has had great success replacing deteriorating pavement with Green Streets.

In the Bay Area, the Green Infill – Clean Stormwater Grant will 1) move several viable integrated flood control, stormwater pollution prevention projects towards completion and demonstrate their efficacy as regional models, 2) offer incentives to local government to initiate innovative zoning and code modifications to promote green, stormwater friendly infill, 3) document the environmental and economic viability of low impact development, and 4) publicize the Green Infill – Clean Stormwater project successes to the local governments, regional, and subregional agencies of the 101-city, nine-county Bay Area.

SFEI's role was to design effective monitoring and performance assessment features into the streets and parking lots prior to retrofitting. This will enable the County to use at least one green street and green parking lot project to conduct long-term monitoring of runoff reduction, and model anticipated environmental benefits of retrofitting whole city neighborhoods. The Green Infill Monitoring Project will evaluate the San Mateo program for pollutant load reduction potential under climatic conditions prevalent in the Bay Area. The budget includes monitoring equipment, site design to accommodate vandal-proof equipment placement, field work, sample analysis, reporting, modeling expected performance of green streets and parking lots on larger spatial scales (20%, 50%, 100% of cityscapes), and developing effective communication tools to convey key findings.

Dates: 
2011
Partners: 
Associated Staff: 
Programs and Focus Areas: 
Clean Water Program
Watershed Monitoring and Modeling
Environmental Informatics Program
Data Services
Location Information