Analyzing Stormwater Management Challenges and Potential in Public Land

Matthew McEnerney (NYC Parks)
Caryn Kunowski (NYC Parks)

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) issued a State Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (SPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit (MS4) to the City of New York. The permit contains requirements to which the city must be compliant, including maps of MS4 drainage areas and plans for community engagement. These focus areas highlight the dynamic and diverse purposes of New York City parks and their dual uses as both infrastructure and as social and cultural domains.

As the largest landowner within the MS4 zone in the City, the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation (NYC Parks) faces a several challenges, especially given the age and complexity of stormwater infrastructure within parkland. The NYC Parks Department wants to continue its new approachto stormwater management, going against the traditional approach of treating stormwater as waste, and instead absorbing stormwater naturally, through bioretention and green infrastructure. We are exploring ways to incorporate stormwater management and educational outreach in our parks community engagement.

This presentation will first discuss how NYC Parks is cataloging and assessing its MS4 zones and infrastructure, both through georeferencing and digitizing drainage plans; and addressing bureaucratic complexity, hydrology, topography, and aging infrastructure. Secondly, the presentation will display the bilateral approach on a policy level with public engagement and education, identifying the social importance of parks