June 4, 2019<\/p>\n
HOUSTON\u2014 With the 2019 Atlantic hurricane season under way as of June 1, Texas has taken a major step toward improving its flood defenses by passing a bill to tap into the state\u2019s savings\u2014the aptly nicknamed Rainy Day Fund\u2014for a sum of $1.7 billion<\/a>. The move comes almost two years after Hurricane Harvey deluged Texas in August 2017, killing 68 people and causing an estimated $125 billion in damage statewide.<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n A chance to push for green infrastructure<\/strong><\/p>\n With its loyal support for the oil and gas industry, it\u2019s not often that the Texas legislature gives conservationists anything to cheer. But the text of Bill 7 cites<\/a> \u201cconstruction and implementation of nonstructural projects, including projects that use nature-based features to protect, mitigate or reduce flood risk.\u201d Environmental advocates see a chance to push for green designs in a state better known for exploiting natural resources than preserving them.<\/p>\n Lawmakers still envision a significant role for traditional \u201cgray\u201d engineered solutions, such as pipes, levees, drainage channels, and retention basins. But Laura Huffman, state director for The Nature Conservancy, thinks politicians are \u201crecognizing that green infrastructure can scale just like gray infrastructure,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n …<\/p>\n \u201cEngineering companies want to do the most expensive thing they can do,\u201d complained Susan Chadwick, executive director of Save Buffalo Bayou, a local advocacy group. Her group argues that chopping down trees and vegetation reduces the land\u2019s stability and potential to absorb water and capture pollution; adds to repair and maintenance costs; and has a negative impact on residents\u2019 wellbeing.<\/p>\n The detention project feels like a compromise between natural and artificial flood-control techniques. \u201cAfter Harvey, they needed to bring some stuff off the shelf and show they are ready to do something,\u201d Chadwick said. She is skeptical that a city that used concrete to conquer swamps, marshes, and prairies can learn to restore green spaces\u2014or just leave them alone.<\/p>\n Read the whole story in CityLab<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n
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