39-3 Green-Gray Infrastructure in Urban Coastal Areas: The Case of a Staten Island Bluebelt Project.

Session: Functions of River Corridors, Floodplains and Wetlands

Presenting Author:

Ricardo Toledo-Crow

Authors:

Toledo-Crow, Ricardo¹, Kress, Michael E.², Zhang, Zhanyang³, Benimoff, Alan I.⁴, Schaefer, Tobias⁵, Duran-Narucki, Valkiria⁶

(1) Environmental Sciences Initiative, CUNY Advanced Science Research Center, New York, , (2) Computer Science Department, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, , (3) Computer Science Department, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, , (4) Engineering and Environmental Science, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, , (5) Mathematics Department, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, , (6) Department of Psychology, College of Staten Island, Staten Island, ,

Abstract:

Urban coastal areas are vulnerable to dangerous and costly impacts from tidal, pluvial, and compound fooding events. We present the description and ongoing study of a green-gray project on the southern coast of Staten Island in New York City as an important response to such events that have modified and improved the quality of life of the residents. In the spectrum of green-gray infrastructure projects, Staten Island’s Bluebelt is a natural stormwater management system using green infrastructure, such as creeks, ponds, and wetlands, to control flooding, improve water quality, and create green spaces. It integrates coastal green infrastructure with minimum grey infrastructure, such as engineered drainage system in flood-prone areas to bring natural beauty and flood resilience to the communities in the areas. The goal of our study is to understand the effectiveness of the Bluebelt to make the local communities more resilient in case of flooding. We used the FloodNet NYC sensor data collected from the study areas in New Creek and South Beach on Staten Island. Our study shows the Bluebelt does reduce the flood frequency and the duration of the flood compared to the flood pattern at the location without the Bluebelt. While the Bluebelt improvements do not eliminate floods; they make the surrounding communities more resilient to floods.

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