Stormwater Management

Houston Flood

Houston's Drainage Problem

Houston received over 50 inches of rain from Hurricane Harvey in five days. While no city could survive that drenching unscathed, Houston was not prepared to handle the floods due to decades of neglect of stormwater management planning.

August 31, 2017 - The Atlantic

Echo Park

Los Angeles County Looking for Ways to Fund Stormwater Management

Supervisor Sheila Kuehl made the announcement at the recent VerdeXchange Conference.

March 6, 2017 - The Planning Report

Los Angeles River Kayak

Los Angeles Takes On Equity and Resilience With New Parks Funding

City and county leaders shared their plans for millions in new annual revenue at the 2017 VerdeXchange Conference.

March 4, 2017 - The Planning Report

Gainesville Park

Gainesville Turns Abandoned Industrial Hub Into Innovative Park

Gainesville turns contaminated land into a contemporary public greenspace to serve as the city's “Central Park."

January 17, 2017 - Modern Cities

No Dumping

A Little Help Explaining the Stormwater Utility Concept

American Rivers has created a toolkit for implementing stormwater utilityies

November 17, 2016 - American Rivers

Desalination

What Happened to all those Desalination Plants Proposed for California?

Less than a decade ago, "desal" proposals in California numbered over 22, but only one major one was built—in Carlsbad, serving the San Diego region. A newly released study by the Pacific Institute explains why.

November 2, 2016 - KQED Science

Meadow Wetlands

California Legislation Recognizes Natural Environments as Water Infrastructure

AB 2480, recently signed into law by California Governor Jerry Brown takes a small but important step toward making better use of natural systems for water management infrastructure.

October 7, 2016 - American Rivers

Midwest Flooding

Midwest Cities Preparing for the Water Management Challenges of Climate Change

Climate researchers are hoping to coordinate the efforts of Midwest cities toward creating plans and working toward more holistic approaches to climate change.

August 14, 2016 - University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Garcetti Tree People

L.A.'s Water Supply Increasingly Relying on Management of Stormwater

In October 2014, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti acted to make the city more resilient from drought and climate change. In 2016, we get an update from leaders Gary Hildebrand and Marty Adams on L.A.'s stormwater capture systems.

May 27, 2016 - The Planning Report

One Geologist Predicted Floods in St. Louis Months Before They Struck

Hindsight is 20-20, but so too sometimes is the foresight of geologists. That was the case prior to the flooding that struck St. Louis this December.

January 3, 2016 - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

China Bridge

Chinese 'Sponge Cities' Will Capture Rainwater

Existing grey infrastructure in China cannot cope with rapid urban expansion and frequent droughts and floods. Several cities, with Beijing's approval, are experimenting with rainwater capture methods as an alternative.

July 13, 2015 - Environment & Energy Publishing (E&E)

Two New Ambitious Stormwater Capture Plans Proposed for Los Angeles

The state of California, along with county and city officials, have taken several steps forward on plans and projects that could help Los Angeles wean itself from imported water.

June 26, 2015 - Los Angeles Times

Designing Permeable Cities for Drought Resilience

Take a kayak trip on the Los Angeles River with KQED science reporter Amy Standen to understand why cities were built on the premise of endless potable water and how we can build cities sustainably in regions that receive low rainfall.

December 4, 2014 - KQED Science

Stormwater Systems as Development Incentives

The GreaterPlaces website gathered information from the "Shared Stormwater Systems as Economic Incentives" panel at the 2014 APA National Conference to outline how shared stormwater systems can enhance the environment and retain business.

July 8, 2014 - GreaterPlaces

Bioswale

Saving More Than Water: Big Benefits from Green Infrastructure

A new report from the Natural Resources Defense Council demonstrates that commercial investment in green infrastructure, particularly in stormwater management, can lead to substantial financial benefits for both owners and tenants.

December 22, 2013 - NRDC Switchboard

8 Ways to Sustainably Manage Stormwater

From permeable paving to green roofs, a number of cost-effective and sustainable strategies have emerged for managing water closer to where it falls, rather than directing it into pipes. SPUR explains 8 promising tools for managing stormwater.

September 14, 2013 - SPUR Blog

New Orleans' New Stormwater Plan: Let It Flood

New Orleans is planning a novel approach to managing the city's perpetual threat of floods. Instead of trying to prevent and pump out every last drop, the city will slow and store stormwater under a 50-year, $6.2 billion program of retrofits.

September 11, 2013 - Grist

Building Storm Defenses While Turning a Profit

The Rockefeller Foundation unveils its innovative plan to incentivize private investors to provide the infrastructure solutions for eight U.S. cities most vulnerable to extreme storms and rising seas.

January 21, 2013 - The Washington Post

40 Years Later: The Way Forward for the Nation's Clean Water Act

The Clean Water Act turns 40 this week. For Mark Gold, this calls for a celebratory overview of the many environmental successes it has produced, as well as careful consideration of the steps needed for it to be effective in years to come.

October 19, 2012 - Los Angeles Times

Philadelphia Making History With Stormwater Management Program

With cities across the country seeking to find innovative and economical solutions to problems caused by combined sewer systems, could Philly's popular Green City, Clean Waters program be a model worth copying?

June 11, 2012 - National Geographic News

News from HUD User

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Call for Speakers

Mpact Transit + Community

New Updates on PD&R Edge

HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Websites

The best of the Internet—since 2002.

Top Apps

Planning apps for a brave new world.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.