Urban Stormwater Governance: The Need for a Paradigm Shift

Abstract

Traditional urban stormwater management involves rapid removal of stormwater through centralized conveyance systems of curb-gutter-pipe networks. This results in many adverse impacts on the environment including hydrological disruption, groundwater depletion, downstream flooding, receiving water quality degradation, channel erosion, and stream ecosystem damage. In order to mitigate these adverse impacts, urban stormwater managers are increasingly using green infrastructure that promote on-site infiltration, restore hydrological functions of the landscape, and reduce surface runoff. Existing stormwater governance, however, is centralized and structured to support the conventional systems. This governance approach is not suited to the emerging distributed management approach, which involves multiple stakeholders including parcel owners, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations. This incongruence between technology and governance calls for a paradigm shift in the governance from centralized and technocratic to distributed and participatory governance. This paper evaluates how five US cities have been adjusting their governance to address the discord. Finally, the paper proposes an alternative governance model, which provides a mechanism to involve stakeholders and implement distributed green infrastructure under an integrative framework.

Le rôle des infrastructures naturelles pour la gestion des eaux de ruissellement et des crues dans un contexte d’adaptation aux changements climatiques

“…Le contexte actuel de l'aménagement des IN est caractérisé par une considération accrue des initiatives ascendantes (bottom-up) qui s'appuient sur des coalitions entre citoyens et pouvoirs municipaux (Bissonnette et collab., 2018). La difficulté à obtenir une adhésion des propriétaires fonciers concernés ou la perception du public à l'égard de certains projets sont des barrières importantes à l'adoption des projets d'aménagement urbain intégrant des IN (Dhakal et Chevalier, 2016).…”

Sustainability

“…A governance model focused on congruence with distributed green infrastructure practices is presented by Dhakal and Chevalier (2016) along with an evaluation of how five US cities have adjusted governance from centralized structures to decentralized structures recognizing the multitude of stakeholders involved in green infrastructure projects. Adaptive management strategies were used in the implementation of rain gardens in Cleveland, Ohio (USA) and lessons learned from partnerships between scientists and practitioners reported (Chaffin et al, 2016).…”

Flood Risk Assessment Using the Updated FEMA Floodplain Standard in the Ellicott City, Maryland, United States

“…In warmed climate, the frequency, intensity, and the severity of extreme climatic events are expected to magnify (Christensen et al, 2007;Paz et al, 2013;Dhakal and Chevalier, 2015;Ghimire et al, 2016;Tamaddun et al, 2016 a,b). Climate change is attributing to the increase in the severe hydrological events such as flooding (Easterling et al, 2000;Ahmad, 2011, 2012;Carrier et al, 2013Carrier et al, , 2016Sagarika et al, 2015a,b;Dhakal and Chevalier, 2016). The study of a floodplain aids in the planning and implementation of mitigation techniques in the flood vulnerable area.…”