Regulators Incorporate Green Infrastructure Into Permitting Procedures, Rules, EPA Says

Requirements that municipalities use green infrastructure as part of their stormwater management practices are becoming more common in local and state permitting procedures and regulations, an Environmental Protection Agency official said.

The EPA itself often incorporates water-quality measures into consent agreements it reaches with municipalities on combined sewer overflows, Bob Newport, a stormwater specialist with EPA Region 5, said at a May 9 conference on green infrastructure in Lansing, Mich., sponsored by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.

“It’s common now that green infrastructure is part of the solution” in CSO settlements, Newport said.

Cities and states also are using ...