Imagine you’re an average citizen in the city or town you live in: You are walking down the road and see a streetside stormwater harvesting swale, also known as a chicane, that the city installed a couple years ago. There are some native plants doing okay in there, but it’s mostly choked out with invasive weeds. You think to yourself: “Who let this happen? Why would the city put this feature here and then neglect it?”
Money for Maintenance
The reality for many municipalities that are implementing green infrastructure as part of their stormwater and wastewater management strategy is that maintenance of those features can be a serious challenge. And that’s not because green infrastructure is more complicated or technical than a wastewater treatment plant! In the Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange’s (GILE) recent report, The State of Public Sector Green Stormwater Infrastructure, the majority of respondents in a survey of green infrastructure programs across the U.S. said that funding for maintenance was a major challenge for their green infrastructure program.
To make matters tougher, most grant and loan programs only cover capital investments and installation (and possibly 3-5 years of plant establishment funding), but do not allow for ongoing maintenance spending after installation and establishment. In response to this challenge, many municipalities turn to an additional fee to support the maintenance of these public assets. In GILE’s report, 66% of survey respondents said that they either have a stormwater fee in place, or are working on establishing one. Municipalities can also use fees to pay back loans for green infrastructure capital projects. Having a plan in place for ongoing funding is an important part of asset management, to maximize the longevity and effectiveness of both green and gray infrastructure assets.
Here’s What Other Cities Are Doing
Get those infiltration trenches and permeable pavers back to their beautiful and functional selves. Here are a few strategies and examples to consider when establishing fees that can support the necessary ongoing maintenance of green infrastructure.
- Fee based on amount of impermeable surface on property
- The City of Beaverton, Oregon calculates stormwater fees based on the number of equivalent surface units (ESUs), or 2,640 square feet of impervious surfaces on a property. Properties pay $11.31 per ESU per month. The average single-family residence pays for one ESU per month, and all other property types pay based on the actual amount of impervious surface area.
- Fee based on water bill
- In Tucson, Arizona, the city’s green stormwater infrastructure program receives funding through monthly fees based on amount of water residents and businesses use, at 12 cents per hundred cubic feet (ccf). Most residents end up paying around $1 per month. As of the writing of this blog, that fee is under review for a possible increase this year as the green infrastructure program grows.
- Flat fee on monthly utility bill
- This strategy has the advantage of being very simple to implement, with very little administrative cost. Most of the time, households and businesses have different fees or even fee structures. The City of Philadelphia charges residential properties a flat fee based on property size, and charges commercial and condominiums based on square footage of impervious surfaces on the property.
You may choose to do a comparative analysis of several strategies to determine which one is most feasible for your city and program, like New York City did.
Before establishing fees to support a green infrastructure maintenance program, you may need to address any policy barriers blocking implementation of fees. New Mexico, for example, recently ruled in favor of legislation allowing cities and towns to establish a stormwater system and collect stormwater fees. Before this bill, municipalities were not allowed (with few exceptions) to establish a regular stormwater fee to help cover the expense of maintenance.
Bottom Line
Whatever fee strategy you choose to pursue, make sure that it’s the right fit for your community. Talk to your ratepayers about the different strategies, and the various departments that are responsible for the green infrastructure assets. With some analysis and planning, you can establish the funds needed to keep your green assets functional and beautiful.
