Climate, Green Infrastructure, and Environmental Justice

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Climate, Green Infrastructure, and Environmental Justice Lisa Cotner llinois Department of Natural Resources

description

National Environmental Justice Conference and Training Program Presentation, March 13, 2015

Transcript of Climate, Green Infrastructure, and Environmental Justice

Slide 1

Climate, Green Infrastructure, and Environmental Justice

Lisa CotnerIllinois Department of Natural ResourcesPartnering to bring sustainable stormwater practices to under-resourced communities in the Calumet Region in Illinois

Project Location

ChicagoProject AreaSeven Communities along the Calumet River CorridorRobbinsBlue IslandCalumet ParkDoltonRiverdaleCalumet CityBurnham

Calumet Region

Calumet Region

Project Area

Percentage of Municipal PopulationBelow 200% of the Federal Poverty GuidelinesCook County, Illinois0 - 7.8%7.9 15.7%15.8 31.4% 31.5%Project Area:Poverty rate 40% higher than the statewide average

Project AreaPercent of the Population that Self-Identifies as Non-Hispanic WhiteCook County, Illinois< 25%25 50%50 75%> 75%

Climate Change Impacts

Cook County, IllinoisProject Area

Presettlement WetlandsCalumet Region

11Calumet Region

OutputsCreate environmental GIS database for communitiesMap approx. 10 green infrastructure target sites for stormwater managementDesign and install 3-5 green infrastructure projectsDevelop interpretive materialsLeverage funds where possibleGreen skill development for Social Enterprise employees

A social enterprise is an organization that uses commercial strategies to maximize improvements in human and environmental well-being, rather than maximizing profits for external shareholders.

13Project Process

Mapping & Community Engagement

A lot goes into the mapping on the back end. Our partners at SSMMA spent countless hours collecting and digitizing data such as storm water infrastructure CAD files and combining all of the relevant layers into a single map. Municipal representatives from all of the communities were involved early in the process through in person meetings and phone calls.15

Prioritization

16Site SelectionPublic propertyKnown storm water issuesVisible location Fits into communitys vision for siteFits into grant timeframe or could be made shovel-ready through site design fundsCriteria for an ideal site

Sites: Veterans Park in Calumet Park

Sites: Village Hall Lot in Robbins

Sites: Blue Island Curb Cut Project

Creating Shovel-Ready ProjectsSite PlansEngineering and Design

ConstructionOAI, Incs Social Enterprise traineesMaster Gardeners

Maintenance & Interpretation

Lessons on Regional CollaborationVery good for project to have a single point of contact for municipal partnersChallenge in turnover in local governmentOn the ground projects in different municipalities can complement each other and work towards the same goalBenefits and challenges of multiple grants funding complementary work in same communitiesWay more opportunities than there are funds--

Our project has a Community Outreach Coordinator who works for SSMMA24

Future Directions

Our project has a Community Outreach Coordinator who works for SSMMA26Thanks!!

Contact: Lisa CotnerIllinois Department of Natural [email protected](312)-814-6414

Our project has a Community Outreach Coordinator who works for SSMMA27