{"id":101572,"date":"2019-02-01T14:21:00","date_gmt":"2019-02-01T22:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/?post_type=arcnews&p=101572"},"modified":"2022-08-10T12:29:38","modified_gmt":"2022-08-10T19:29:38","slug":"green-infrastructure-plan-fuels-smarter-growth-in-richland-county","status":"publish","type":"arcnews","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/about\/newsroom\/arcnews\/green-infrastructure-plan-fuels-smarter-growth-in-richland-county","title":{"rendered":"Green Infrastructure Plan Fuels Smarter Growth in Richland County"},"author":1312,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"sync_status":"","episode_type":"","audio_file":"","castos_file_data":"","podmotor_file_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[10402,401,981],"tags":[301,351,1441],"arcnews_issues":[86262],"class_list":["post-101572","arcnews","type-arcnews","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-arcgis-desktop","category-government","category-green-infrastructure","tag-community","tag-planning","tag-resilience","arcnews_issues-winter-2017","arcnews_sections-your-work"],"acf":{"short_description":"With GIS and a green infrastructure model, Richland County, South Carolina, found scientific support for strategic conservation.","pdf":{"host_remotely":false,"file":"","file_url":""},"flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

With GIS and a Green Infrastructure Model, Government Finds Scientific Support for Strategic Conservation<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\r\nTo mitigate the effects of climate change and extreme weather events, governments at the state, regional, county, and municipal levels must understand why these events occur and how their impacts can be prevented in the long term.\r\n\r\nFollowing a devastating storm in Richland County, South Carolina, decision-makers there are gaining a better understanding of how people's choices alter natural environments\u2014and how these changes affect everyday life and future generations. The county is now testing a new approach to bolster the region's sustainability. By combining GIS with a green infrastructure methodology, Richland County is gaining a scientific understanding for how to create a more resilient, economically viable, and smarter place to live and do business.\r\n

The Long-Term Consequences of Disaster Recovery<\/h3>\r\nIn October 2015, a two-day storm caused by Hurricane Joaquin swept across South Carolina, leading to devastating flooding, more than a dozen deaths, and the destruction of critical infrastructure. The state recorded $12 billion in losses with up to 160,000 homes damaged.\r\n\r\nRichland County was hit worst. This once-in-1,000-years event dumped two feet of water in some areas of the county, killing nine people and threatening the drinking water. Schools, businesses, and roads remained closed weeks after record rainfall and dam failures occurred.\r\n\r\nThe historic flood urged decision-makers to ask serious questions. Why did flooding occur in this area? What caused the dams to fail? What can we do to prevent this from happening again?\r\n\r\nFor some, however, the answers had been evident for a long time.\r\n\r\n\"Flooding is a natural event, but the impacts we experience are caused by humans,\" said Quinton Epps, director of the Richland County Conservation Department. \"We build in the areas that are flood prone. Very often, we change the areas in dramatic ways\u2026that increase flooding impacts. These are things people have known for hundreds of years.\""},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":101792,"image_position":"right","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"Homes built near bodies of water, for example, are appealing and tend to have higher property values, but they are predisposed to flooding. In Richland County, regulations require developers to build houses that would accommodate a 100-year event, meaning the structures must be built two feet above the base of a potential flood. But although subdivisions meet current regulations, they are still in danger of being damaged by more severe floods like the county saw during its 1,000-year event.\r\n\r\nAs the person in charge of securing properties and funding for conservation efforts, Epps also acquires easements to help avoid disasters like the 2015 flood. He spearheads projects to connect people with nature as well.\r\n\r\nThe job is no easy task. Success relies heavily on factors that are out of his control, such as the availability of land, willingness of property owners to sell or donate easements, and political interests that drive funding and development decisions.\r\n\r\nAfter Hurricane Joaquin, Epps advocated to fund easements in flood zones to ensure that the land is never developed. But Richland County allocated its limited grant dollars from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the US Department of Housing and Urban Development elsewhere\u2014namely, to rebuilding homes and roads.\r\n\r\n\"The way people look at disaster recovery tells the story of how we don't look at long-term consequences,\" Epps said. \"Do we have money to fix the problems of the last 50 to 100 years of development? No. But we can try to prevent history from repeating itself.\"\r\n\r\nTo Epps, most disaster recovery and development strategies focus on rebuilding and extending existing man-made infrastructure. However, these strategies dismiss a critical component of creating a safe and livable community: green infrastructure.\r\n

Using GIS to Identify, Map Critical Resources<\/h3>\r\nSeveral months after the storm, Epps attended a workshop hosted by Karen Firehock of the Green Infrastructure Center, where she presented her methodology for developing and implementing a green infrastructure plan."},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":101802,"image_position":"left","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"The idea was appealing\u2014use data, science, and GIS to identify and map the critical resources that make each community unique and that also serve a vital purpose, such as rivers, trees, and hazard areas. Then, prioritize the ones that should be preserved and roll out a plan that protects, restores, and connects the landscapes.\r\n\r\nWith Richland County still reeling from the flood, a green infrastructure model could do more than connect people with nature; it could also help win executive buy-in for conservation projects that safeguard wildlife habitats, protect people and property from future harm, and boost the economy. By using GIS to assess all the county's features that the community deems valuable, Richland could explain the importance of green infrastructure in a more scientific way.\r\n\r\n\"We could provide a rational basis for conservation efforts not tied to politics or opinions,\" Epps said.\r\n\r\nHe was inspired to formulate a green infrastructure plan that would enable the county to plan smarter, but he couldn't do it alone. Based on Firehock's guide,\u00a0Evaluating and Conserving Green Infrastructure Across the Landscape<\/em>, he knew one person would be the key to developing the model\u2014Brenda Carter, GIS manager for the planning and development services department at Richland County.\r\n

A Green Infrastructure Plan for Richland County<\/h3>\r\nWhen Epps approached Carter to help with the project, she read through the guide and did additional research online. Carter was familiar with the concept of green infrastructure, given her 32-year career in GIS. And soon, she knew why Richland County needed a green infrastructure plan and why GIS was such a critical component.\r\n\r\n\"Reading through everything made me realize that this was something really, really important for all counties and for all people\u2014especially after our county had just suffered a great flood,\" Carter said. \"I started seeing the connections as to why the flood could have happened and why we needed to do something about it.\"\r\n\r\nThus, the planning and conservation departments formed a partnership to bring green infrastructure planning to Richland County. Carter outlined goals and developed the entire green infrastructure blueprint. She began by identifying four goals:\r\n