Editors : the Record put together some lower-cost alternatives to alleviate area flooding , focusing a many new technologies and some old fashion common sense ideas , oddly omitting any discussion about all the run off from turf fields
Could low-cost options reduce flooding from Passaic, Hackensack rivers?
Sunday January 27, 2013, 11:20 PM
BY JAMES M. O’NEILL
STAFF WRITER
The Record
In the decades-old debate over how to reduce chronic flooding along the Passaic and Hackensack rivers, proposals have often involved huge, expensive infrastructure projects, such as a larger sewers or a $2.7 billion tunnel to carry the water out to sea. Now, there is a growing push for radically different, lower-cost alternatives — planting gardens on rooftops, installing grassy swales or depressions in highway medians and parking lots, adding rain gardens on front lawns and attaching rain barrels to residential gutters.
These varying strategies, collectively called green infrastructure, are all designed to do the same thing — capture rainwater before it ever reaches the storm drains, reducing the risk of flooding.
While many environmental initiatives are inherently controversial because they look to prohibit development or limit growth, there are generally few vocal opponents of green infrastructure. The principal obstacle remains the upfront cost to individual homeowners or developers who might consider embracing the strategy.
Proponents say those costs often cause people to overlook real long-term savings, since green roofs can better insulate a building, making it more energy-efficient, and the captured water can be used to irrigate lawns and run toilets, cutting operational costs. Green infrastructure can also increase property values and lower the huge costs many communities face to upgrade or replace aging sewer and water infrastructure.
