Maryland's Prince George's County must comply with a federal "pollution diet" to clean up the Chesapeake Bay. Over the next 10 years, the county must convert 15,000 acres of watertight surfaces—almost 5% of the county's total area—into surfaces that absorb or treat rainwater.
That will require adding some 46,000 stormwater devices. The county is turning to a novel approach to get the rain gardens, cisterns, permeable pavements, and other devices for filtering and absorbing stormwater built.
These features are geared to slow the rapid runoff from roads and rooftops in order to reduce pollution that flows into sewers and which then makes its way into the bay.
Its partnership with Corvias Solutions, which is in charge of designing, building, and maintaining the improvements, has been hired to convert 2,000 acres by 2017. If the company performs well, that amount could double.
The county will also have its own team of workers to work on another 2,000 acres. Officials will be able compare the performance of the two teams and then decide how to proceed.
Related Stories
Standards | Aug 16, 2016
Standard for conducting, reporting energy audits open for review
A joint ASHRAE/ACCA proposal seeks comments from industry professionals.
Legislation | Aug 10, 2016
Calif. bill would speed up environmental lawsuits on certain projects
A nine-month limit has been proposed for some $100 million-plus projects.
Resiliency | Aug 10, 2016
White House pushes for better finance strategies for disaster mitigation and resilience
The move highlights innovative insurance, mortgage, tax, and finance-based strategies.
Regulations | Aug 9, 2016
New trend eases parking requirements for U.S. cities
Transit-oriented development and affordable housing are spurring the movement.
Regulations | Aug 8, 2016
EPA toughens rules to reduce formaldehyde exposure from composite wood products
Products will now have to be labeled as compliant to the new rules.
Regulations | Aug 5, 2016
Stop-work orders in New York City up sharply this year
The orders come after a rise in the number of deadly accidents that have occurred in the past few years.
Sustainability | Aug 4, 2016
S.F. Bay Area voters approve first-of-its-kind tax to fight impact of climate change
The funds from the tax will be used to restore wetlands
Concrete | Aug 2, 2016
Concrete Association builds case against cross-laminated timber
The campaign asserts that not enough is known about CLT in construction
Seismic Design | Jul 28, 2016
Risk of man-made earthquakes now factor in seismic hazard analysis
Significant risk increases seen in some areas of the U.S.
Resiliency | Jul 27, 2016
New York’s resilience plans not taking long-term view, critics charge
Continued waterfront development may be regretted later this century.