April 2016 - Parks & Recreation - 76

NRPA Update

Great Urban Parks Campaign: Green
Infrastructure in Underserved Communities
By Jessica Culverhouse

ate last year, NRPA and the American Planning Association
(APA) kicked off an expansion of their collaborative Great Urban
Parks Campaign in an effort to explore the social and environmental benefits of green infrastructure projects in parks in underserved
communities.

What is Green Infrastructure?
The basic purpose of green infrastructure is to capture rain or stormwater and allow it to gradually seep
into the ground or return to natural
creeks or river systems. This is in
contrast to traditional " grey " infrastructure, which functions to remove
stormwater as quickly as possible
into gutters, storm drains, sewers or
other constructed channels, often
carrying with it sediment, oil, trash
and other pollutants from roads and
sidewalks before it is released into
waterways. Some examples of green
infrastructure that can be found in a
park and recreation setting include

rain gardens, permeable pavement,
green roofs, native plantings along
streambanks and constructed or restored wetlands.
Green infrastructure provides a
solution to many of the challenges
of grey infrastructure. By slowing
the flow of stormwater, green infrastructure reduces pollution due to
stormwater runoff that can carry pollutants into local waterways. Using
plants, green infrastructure taps into
natural processes to filter and clean
the water before it seeps into the
ground or slowly flows into creeks or
rivers. And by reducing the flow of
stormwater into sewer pipes during

Attendees of the Great Urban Parks Campaign convening visited the future site of
Proctor Park. The 4-acre site in Atlanta's underserved west-side community will be
transformed with green infrastructure improvements to manage stormwater and
provide a space for recreation and connecting with nature.

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heavy rainfall, green infrastructure
can serve to reduce incidences of
combined sewer overflow.
In addition to these important
environmental benefits, green infrastructure is beautiful, increases wildlife habitat and can provide opportunities for environmental education
and outdoor recreation. These are
the so-called " co-benefits " of green
infrastructure, perhaps, that most interest those involved in the designing
or re-designing of parks. Add to that
an opportunity to actively engage the
community in the process of designing and implementing green infrastructure projects and the benefits
will multiply.
As with many environmental challenges, the problems of poorly managed stormwater - flooding, combined sewer overflows and others
- often disproportionately impact
low-income communities and communities of color. The application of
green infrastructure can help alleviate
these environmental hazards while
engaging the community and increasing access to nature and green space.
During the next two years, NRPA
and APA aim to equip and support
park leaders and planners to collaborate and advance the implementation
of green infrastructure in parks for
the multiple benefits to communities
and the environment.
A Gathering of Thought Leaders
As a first step in this effort, last month
NRPA hosted a convening of experts
and thought leaders to help us frame
the challenge and delve deep into the

April 2016 - Parks & Recreation

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