In May of 2020, a Michigan dam collapsed after a heavy rainfall. The resulting flood forced thousands to flee their homes and will cost upwards of $175 million dollars. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer called it “an event unlike anything we’ve ever seen in 500 years”. Michigan is having to seek federal funding to try and support and rebuild the community.
More and more communities will be faced with unprecedented challenges due to the increase of extreme weather events and ageing grey infrastructure. After the economic losses of COVID19, any extreme weather event resulting in damage will further hinder a city’s health, wealth and prosperity.
Green infrastructure is a low-cost and effective solution that can reduce the burden on our ageing storm infrastructure and reduce floods while also providing a host of public and private benefits. New technology can help monitor and support a city’s tracking and response to flooding before it becomes a crisis. Both avenues support community resilience, create much-needed jobs and are part of a COVID19 recovery plan.
GRHC’s virtual symposium will explore innovative technologies, creative design strategies and new policy measures that will help create more liveable cities, support economic growth through job creation and improve resilience.
Admission 50.00 USD
Pending approval for 3 LU|HSW credits from AIA, ASLA, APLD, and GRP credits
Sponsor
Speakers
Click photo for full bio and session details.
Schedule
| Time | Speaker | Topic |
| 1:10 | Steve Williams, Environmental Manager, ABT, Inc. | Resilient Landscapes Through Stormwater Management A discussion on “Capillary Irrigation” showing how it functions, the history of research, and the contributions toward creating more sustainable cities from rooftops and planters down to streets and trees. |
| 1:30 | Harvy S. Takhar, Masters Student at BCIT | Connected Blue-Green Roofs: How does a ‘COnnectED BLUE-GREEN’ roof perform to reduce heating/cooling loads and manage storm water? |
| 1:50 | Dr. Joowon Im, University of Texas at Arlington | Smart Planter for Sustainable Community Design Neighborhood alleys have a profound relationship with the community as they serve as a path for pedestrians and serve as a social gathering place. They can become a casual area where people talk to their neighbors and wait for someone or a playground for children. However, alleys are often ignored and not much time and effort are put into developing them especially in communities with socioeconomic disparities. Because it is often costly to maintain, sometimes it is considered a luxury for the communities to have safe and beautiful alleys with lush vegetation in front of their houses. However, smart planters with an automated irrigation system were designed to maintain by itself and were useful to provide a better quality of life for a low-income community in Seoul, Korea. The system attached to the planter collects stormwater from the adjacent rooftop and irrigate the planter with an integrated drought sensor. It is a low-cost system and operates in a sustainable way to irrigate the planters in the neighborhood alley. The presentation will focus on 1) the role of the smart planter as a means of providing a safer and healthier community environment and 2) the affordable and effective techniques adopted to the planter. |
| 2:10 | Q&A | |
| 2:25 | Break | |
| 2:45 | Brian Schmitt, Project Manager, MetroPolder Company | The Polder Roof: Smart Blue-Green Technology for Enhanced Stormwater and Energy Impact What if your roof knew how and when to store water? What if you could manage this water to eliminate CSO contribution, grow food, and cool the city? What if all this was visible with real-time data? Welcome to the concept of the Polder Roof. The Polder Roof is a Smart Blue Green Solution with a measured impact. This presentation is an introduction and investigation into our findings. |
| 3:05 | David Yocca, FASLA, PLA, Consulting Landscape Architect/Ecological Planner | A Net-Positive Water Attitude for Communities As the use of green infrastructure continues to expand substantially throughout North America, it has become increasingly obvious that flood attenuation is only one of the critical objectives living surfaces can and should address. Green infrastructure can be calibrated to balance, treat, and deploy rain and wastewater while reducing energy demands, cooling urban conditions, and providing a more humane context for living. While green infrastructure elements and practices have evolved substantially since early adoption in North America several decades ago, greater potential can be unleashed through holistic, integrative approaches and applications. This session is focused on how developing a net-positive water “attitude” with a more comprehensive water-centric, ecological-focused approach to green infrastructure deployment can help communities adapt to changing climates and spatial needs. |
| 3:25 | Briana Garcia, Product Outreach, Temboo | Green Roofs & Remote IoT Sensors: Advancing stormwater management into the 21st century with community engagement What is the true value of a green roof? Both its ecological, economic and community impacts? With remote sensing capabilities, we are advancing stormwater management into the 21st century and amplifying the benefits of green roofs by remotely monitoring and maintaining these green spaces with real-time data. By leveraging IoT, we are also democratizing technology to enable the community to remotely learn and advocate for the next generation of green infrastructure. |
| 3:45 | Q&A | |
| 4:00 | Dr. Chris Zevenbergen, IHE Delft & TuDelft; Dr. Jennifer Drake, University of Toronto; Rui Wang, Pennsylvania State University; Moderatore: David Yocca, FASLA, PLA, Consulting Landscape Architect/Ecological Planner | Panel Discussion: Sponge Cities and Ecosystem Benefits From inland stormwater to coastal flooding, water presents a growing issue for North American cities, and innovative, cross-disciplinary solutions are required to solve these problems and provide maximum benefits. This panel will explore the ecosystem benefits provision by green stormwater infrastructure in China’s pilot sponge cities and how artful designs can play a significant role in maximizing the perceived social good. |
Learn About:
The benefits of green infrastructure as a tool for water management
How environmental, social, and economic benefits build a case for green infrastructure as a water management method
Emerging water management practices
New opportunities to advance the green infrastructure
Examples of green infrastructure thriving