S.W.I.M. Coalition

1.  Water Board meeting — rate study — Friday, April 3rd

The city’s Sustainable Stormwater Management Plan states that DEP will present  findings of its ongoing “rate study” — including the potential for separating out the stormwater component and charging based on the imperviousness of a site — at the April meeting of the Water Board, which is now scheduled for this Friday, April 3rd, at 8:30 a.m.  The meeting location is the Department of City Planning’s Spector Hall, 22 Reade Street, 1st Floor.  Members of the public are given an opportunity to speak at each Water Board meeting.

2.  City Council, Environmental Protection Committee — oversight hearing on implementation of Sustainable Stormwater Management Plan — Tuesday, April 7th 

The City Council has scheduled an oversight hearing on April 7th on implementation of the city’s Sustainable Stormwater Management Plan.  The meeting is at at 1pm, in the Committee Room, City Hall.  As always, there will be an opportunity for members of the public to offer testimony.   

The federal stimulus bill provided $432 million for clean water infrastructure projects in NY State, and required that 20% ($86 million) be set-aside specifically for green stormwater infrastructure — i.e., projects that maintain, restore, or mimic natural systems to infiltrate, evapotranspirate, or recycle stormwater – as well as water or energy efficiency improvements, or other environmentally innovative projects.  DEC just posted information about its new “Green Innovation Grant Program” that will administer the set-aside funds.  Government and non-government entities are both eligible to apply.   Proposed projects must be “shovel-ready” to start construction by Jan. 1, 2010.  Applications are due May 9th.

The full public notice is available here (skip to the middle of the page) —  http://www.dec.ny.gov/enb/20090325_not0.html.

 [See update posted 4/13 -- application materials now available online; deadline extended to 5/29 (http://www.nysefc.org/home/index.asp?page=688]

The next SWIM Coalition meeting will be held at NYC Soil and Water Conservation District, at 121 Avenue of the Americas, in the 5th Floor Conference Room. Hope to see you there!

The Department of City Planning (DCP) has proposed to amend the zoning rules governing the design of waterfront public access areas.  Among other things, the proposal would require the creation of vegetated, permeable surfaces in waterfront developments.  SWIM submitted comments to the City Planning Commission urging that the proposal be stregthened to ensure that site designs maximize the potential for such permeable areas to manage stormwater from adjacent impervious areas.  Details on the city’s proposal can be found at http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/waterfront/index.shtml.

 UPDATE:  On April 1, 2009, the City Planning Commission voted to approve the proposed amendments, with certain revisions, sending them to the City Council for review.  The Council has until May 26, 2009 to decide whether to approve the proposal.  While (as noted above) the proposal includes some provisions that may create new opportunities for on-site stormwater management, none of SWIM’s additional suggestions related to stormwater were adopted.  In response to SWIM’s comments, the Commission’s report (http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/cpc/090239.pdf) states only that: