Christine Knapp
Philadelphia Water gathered with partners and supporters of the City of Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters program at the Fairmount Water Works on Thursday, June 16 2016 to celebrate the five year anniversary of the historic green stormwater infrastructure plan’s adoption.
Joined by U.S. EPA Regional Administrator Shawn Garwin, Pa. DEP Regional Director Cosmo Servidio and City of Philadelphia Managing Director Michael DiBeradinis, Philadelphia Water Commissioner Debra A. McCarty announced that City had surpassed five year regulatory targets, resulting in a 1.5 billion gallon reduction in stormwater runoff and combined sewer overflows during a typical year of rainfall.
This historic achievement was made possible through the public and private creation of 837.7 Greened Acres in Philadelphia, and many of the partners and organizations contributed were on hand to celebrate at the event, dubbed “5 Down.”
Under the 2011 agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Pa. Dept. of Environmental Protection (EPA), the City was required to create 744 Greened Acres, representing a 600 million gallon per-year reduction in runoff and overflows, by June 2016. Overall, the City must create nearly 10,000 Greened Acres over at 25-year period and reduce typical annual overflows by about 8 billion gallons.
Each Greened Acre uses green tools such rain gardens and stormwater tree planters to manage at least 27,158 gallons of runoff from hard surfaces like streets and parking lots every time an inch of rain falls in the city. In addition to filtering pollutants out of stormwater, green infrastructure sites keep excess water out of Philadelphia’s overburdened sewer system, where overflows can lead to sewage spilling into local waterways.
The event also featured a special beer created by Saint Benjamin Brewery in Kensington to highlight efforts to protect the source water they depend on for brewing and a musical performance by Philadelphia native Sterlen Barr. Mural Arts and the Public Workshop helped to support the five year milestone celebration. Members of the Philadelphia Water Public Affairs Unit created a backdrop showing photos from green infrastructure sites and Green City, Clean Waters events held since 2011.
Learn more about the what Green City, Clean Waters has accomplished in the first five years and what’s in store for the 20 at www.Phillywatersheds.org/5Down
Christine Knapp
Philadelphia Water gathered with partners and supporters of the City of Philadelphia’s Green City, Clean Waters program at the Fairmount Water Works on Thursday, June 16 2016 to celebrate the five year anniversary of the historic green stormwater infrastructure plan’s adoption.
Joined by U.S. EPA Regional Administrator Shawn Garwin, Pa. DEP Regional Director Cosmo Servidio and City of Philadelphia Managing Director Michael DiBeradinis, Philadelphia Water Commissioner Debra A. McCarty announced that City had surpassed five year regulatory targets, resulting in a 1.5 billion gallon reduction in stormwater runoff and combined sewer overflows during a typical year of rainfall.
This historic achievement was made possible through the public and private creation of 837.7 Greened Acres in Philadelphia, and many of the partners and organizations contributed were on hand to celebrate at the event, dubbed “5 Down.”
Under the 2011 agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency and the Pa. Dept. of Environmental Protection (EPA), the City was required to create 744 Greened Acres, representing a 600 million gallon per-year reduction in runoff and overflows, by June 2016. Overall, the City must create nearly 10,000 Greened Acres over at 25-year period and reduce typical annual overflows by about 8 billion gallons.
Each Greened Acre uses green tools such rain gardens and stormwater tree planters to manage at least 27,158 gallons of runoff from hard surfaces like streets and parking lots every time an inch of rain falls in the city. In addition to filtering pollutants out of stormwater, green infrastructure sites keep excess water out of Philadelphia’s overburdened sewer system, where overflows can lead to sewage spilling into local waterways.
The event also featured a special beer created by Saint Benjamin Brewery in Kensington to highlight efforts to protect the source water they depend on for brewing and a musical performance by Philadelphia native Sterlen Barr. Mural Arts and the Public Workshop helped to support the five year milestone celebration. Members of the Philadelphia Water Public Affairs Unit created a backdrop showing photos from green infrastructure sites and Green City, Clean Waters events held since 2011.
Learn more about the what Green City, Clean Waters has accomplished in the first five years and what’s in store for the 20 at www.Phillywatersheds.org/5Down