Study: D.C.’s Poorest Neighborhoods Are Most Vulnerable to Stormwater

“A new University of Maryland study suggests that Washington, D.C.'s most socioeconomically vulnerable neighborhoods are less equipped to handle runoff from heavy rainfalls made more frequent by climate change,” according to a recent article by Maggie Haslam for Phys.org.

The study found that the city’s densest communities, particularly those in historically Black Southeast D.C., have fewer sewer pipes and lack green and gray infrastructure like permeable pavement, rain gardens, trees, and green roofs to adequately control and absorb the stormwater. 

The higher prevalence of impervious surfaces in these neighborhoods creates excess runoff, which then overwhelms the outdated sewer structure, resulting in more frequent and severe flooding. Researchers attribute the disinvestment and infrastructure inequity to “racist planning practices dating to the 19th century that fueled inequitable infrastructure distribution and housing conditions across D.C.”

“The study … is one of the few to look at both above- and below-ground infrastructure through a socioeconomic lens, and the first to do so for the District of Columbia, with the aim of helping city planners funnel infrastructure dollars to neighborhoods most at risk,” Haslam reports.