Greening the Pittsburgh Wet Weather Plan
Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority
The Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority (PWSA) is a municipal authority in Pittsburgh serving approximately 250,000 customers.
The Greening the Pittsburgh Wet Weather Plan Charrette Project was created with the primary objective of developing a consensus approach to reviewing, recommending and incorporating a plan for the implementation of green stormwater infrastructure technologies and policies into the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority (PWSA) Wet Weather Feasibility Study.
Our Approach
The project was comprised of three charrettes designed to identify green infrastructure opportunities, associated benefits and concerns, and related legal, institutional, and financial issues. Over 3 months, charrette participants used maps and worksheets provided by Fourth Economy Consulting to identify possible green infrastructure project locations and offer reactions to proposed actions and approaches to water quality management. Overall, 125 independent individuals participated, representing a diverse array of public, private, and non-profit organizations. Each charrette had nearly equal representation from all three sectors. As a result of the active engagement these individuals collectively donated more than 1,000 hours of their time to assist PWSA in its effort to better understand the challenges and opportunities associated with green infrastructure.
The charrettes provided a forum for stakeholders to learn more about the wet weather planning process, to build new partnerships, and to share their knowledge about green infrastructure with PWSA.
The Results
The knowledge gathered from the charrettes is captured in the Findings section of the resulting report, which outlines the challenges that were identified and the recommendations suggested relative to the general categories of Authority to Implement, Education and Outreach, Regulations, Financial Considerations, Maintenance, and Monitoring. The results of this work were used to inform the Wet Weather Plan submitted to secure compliance with a Federal Department of Environmental Protection Consent Decree as well as state and local requirements.
Location
Pittsburgh, PA