Green stormwater infrastructure: A prototypical multi-domain, complex infrastructure system

Runoff generated from impervious surfaces in urbanized watersheds is an extensive liability for water utilities which must meet increasingly stringent federal regulations governing its discharge. Traditional "grey" infrastructure solutions to this problem are costly because they involve expansion of existing collections systems and/or creation of in-line storage. A new suite of "green" infrastructure (GI) approaches would reduce the quantity of runoff by addressing its source, while also addressing many urban sustainability goals. However, to be effective, such approaches (1) would need to be implemented widely in urban watersheds, (2) would require coordination/collaboration between multiple stakeholders, (3) would need to be implemented relatively rapidly and efficiently, and (4) would require the development of new decentralized maintenance and quality control measures. Through description of these four challenges, this paper presents green infrastructure as a case study in multi-domain, complex infrastructure planning.