Read Dean Marriott’s commentary in today’s Oregonian

Today’s Oregonian features “Buying the River View natural area expands Portland’s watershed protection” by Dean Marriott, Director of Portland’s Environmental Services. Below are some excerpts from his commentary in The Stump:

About 37 inches of rain falls on Portland every year. When rain hits the city’s streets and other hard surfaces, it generates an estimated 20 billion gallons of stormwater runoff annually. The watershed management plan emphasizes using green infrastructure to manage stormwater at its source, where rain falls.

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That’s why Portland is expanding its green infrastructure through the Grey to Green initiative. Vegetated roofs and trees absorb rain to reduce runoff. Swales collect stormwater runoff from streets and allow water to soak into the ground to replenish groundwater. Natural areas, particularly those near creeks and rivers, protect water quality, absorb rain and provide fish and wildlife habitat.

Green infrastructure makes the traditional pipe infrastructure we’ve been investing in for more than a century more efficient, and it will save money. The Tabor to the River Program is a good example. Environmental Services is replacing or repairing 81,000 feet of sewer pipe and constructing 500 green street facilities in a 2.3-square-mile area between Mount Tabor and the Willamette River in Southeast Portland. The projects will improve the sewer system, reduce basement backups and manage stormwater runoff.

The estimated cost of using only pipe solutions to accomplish Tabor to the River is $144 million. Adding green stormwater management systems reduces the estimated cost to $86 million and has the added benefit of enhancing water quality and watershed health. Green approaches can save money for our ratepayers and achieve goals for making our neighborhoods more livable.

Friends of Trees is honored to partner with Portland’s Environmental Services in both Tabor to the River and the Grey to Green Initiative. To date, we have guided volunteers in planting about 9,000 trees through the Grey to Green Initiative.

We’re looking forward to our continued partnership with the city. The next planting season will mark the second year of our Plant It Portland! campaign, which is part of the Grey to Green Initiative.

Thank you, Environmental Services, for your leadership in changing Portland’s grey to green!

–TR