Spotlight
On. . .
A
National Demonstration Project for Low Impact Development
Soon
after receiving NEMO training, the Town of Waterford volunteered
to work with the EPA and CT DEP on a novel stormwater research
project. The proposal was to build the first research site that
would focus exclusively on suburban development. This research
project, termed the Jordan Cove Urban Watershed National Monitoring
Project, focused on a unique public/private partnership to incorporate
and monitor the effectiveness of a variety of stormwater best management
practices (BMPs) in the Glen Brook Green Subdivision.
The
18-acre subdivision consists of two parts. The traditional section
uses a standard lot layout, 24 ft asphalt roads with curb and gutter
drainage collection and turf landscaping. The second section uses
a variety of low impact design techniques, such as a clustering
of lots, community open space, a 20 ft wide concrete-paver road
with a grassed-swale drainage system, a cul-de-sac with a vegetated
center island for the retention and infiltration of runoff and
shared driveways with a variety of pervious pavements. The study
was constructed so stormwater runoff from the site could be monitored
during all phases of construction and for several years after completion.
Although
the results from the Jordan Cove study are still coming in, current
monitoring data are extremely favorable. The low impact
section of the development has shown less than half the stormwater
runoff volume as compared to the traditional development.
In fact, early results show that during storm events the low impact
sites seem to be mimicking the natural hydrology of the area. This
reduction in runoff means fewer pollutants getting to the nearby
stream and less impact from increased volume of water coming off
development.
In 2006,
the NEMO Team will be creating a multimedia CD and website devoted
to “telling the story” of this unique project.
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Beyond
Local Impacts
The
NEMO Program began as a pilot project in three communities in Connecticut
in 1991. Since then, the program has had a profound impact on local
land-use planning throughout the state, as documented in the 2004
publication Putting Communities in Charge. In the course of this
work, NEMO has won several national and state awards. In addition,
success at the local level has led to “ripple effects” that
go beyond local changes.
As with
several other Network members, NEMO has had an impact on the “home
team” of its host organization, in this case the University
of Connecticut (UConn). NEMO has been working with the new UConn
Office of Environmental Policy to help promote environmentally
sound development and building practices. The result has been the
creation of UConn Sustainable Design Guidelines, which are given
to all bidders and contractors involved with new buildings on campus.
Low impact development stormwater practices are now becoming a
common feature of new University site plans. In April 2002, the
University established the Center for Land Use Education and Research
(CLEAR) as an official University Center. CLEAR brings together
several programs at the university dedicated to improving land
use practices through research, tools, training and education,
including the CT NEMO Program and the National NEMO Network.
At
the state level, NEMO programs and references have been
incorporated into many important state plans and policy documents,
including the State Plan of Conservation and Development,
State 319 Nonpoint Source Plan, Coastal Zone Management Act Section
6217 Coastal Nonpoint Source Plan and the new Connecticut Stormwater
Quality Manual. The latter, created by the state Department
of Environmental Protection (CT DEP) as a resource for all communities
in the state, contains figures, photos and recommendations from
NEMO throughout. NEMO is currently assisting CT DEP with statewide
training on the Manual for municipal officials, town and consulting
civil engineers, landscape architects, public works departments,
regional planning organizations, state agencies and others.
At
the national level, NEMO has made its way into several
high-profile policy documents and reports, including the recently
released report of the 2004 U.S. Commission on Ocean
Policy, and a General Accounting Office report on incentives
to promote better land use. NEMO principals also have
been a leading force for arguing the importance of educating
local land use officials, in publications covering many disciplines
and ranging from the Journal of Extension to the Planning
Commissioners Journal to the Journal of Photogrammetric Engineering
and Remote Sensing. And, of course, there’s the National
NEMO Network!
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Spotlight
on Old
Saybrook , CT
Old
Saybrook joined the CT NEMO Municipal Initiative in 2000, and
with the help of NEMO staff the town's multi-commission NEMO
Task Force is spearheading an overhaul of town land
use plans and regulations. Natural resource
and economic resource inventories have been conducted, local
road standards are being revised, and the Board of
Selectmen has put forth a policy statement on development that
has already resulted in the town's first water-friendly
innovative subdivision.
Excerpts
from Old Saybrook's Policy Statement on Development: It
is the desire of the Board of Selectmen to encourage the
use of design standards . . . that will maintain and enhance
the character of the Town [and] minimize potential impacts
to the environment . . . The specific objectives of the Board
are to: 1. Reduce increases in volume, velocity and rates
of stormwater runoff. 2. Minimize erosion and sedimentation
of wetlands, watercourses and drainage systems. 3. Minimize
the potential for increased frequency and severity of flooding.
4. Minimize potential for stream channel and floodplain changes.
5. Minimize the potential for reduction in groundwater recharge
and reduction of stream base flows. 6. Minimize the discharge
of pollutants to wetlands and watercourses.
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