Abstract
Coastal cities suffer from flooding in part due to increased impervious surfaces from construction and development projects. One way to curb flooding is to install green stormwater infrastructure (GSI). But a few barriers prevent the installation of GSI: technical uncertainty, city ordinances, and the costs of constructing and maintaining those systems. Our team of engineers and attorneys is assessing GSI implementation, including evaluating the effectiveness of GSI techniques to prevent flooding, conducting life-cycle cost assessments, and analyzing whether city ordinances pose a legal or economic barrier to implementing GSI in communities in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. We have selected two properties to analyze: one in Orange Beach, AL and one in Biloxi, MS. The main goal of this project is to help communities become more resilient to flooding. During the 2-year project funded by the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, the project team will work on the following objectives: (1) estimate changes in potential floodwater volumes based on different stormwater control structures imposed by city ordinances; (2) estimate construction and long-term operation and maintenance costs for stormwater infrastructure, including GSI, based on current and potential future versions of city ordinances; (3) determine at what point the city ordinances or regulatory requirements for GSI increase life-cycle costs to the point that it is not practical to build; and (4) propose modified ordinances to include flexible GSI options for communities to improve their resilience to climate change and their FEMA Community Rating System flood impact reduction scores. The presentation will discuss the scope of the project and what has been learned at this point, emphasizing information useful to Northern Gulf cities regarding mapping and what data are being used. The presentation will also discuss what information is sought from Orange Beach and Biloxi zoning and stormwater ordinances.
