August 2016, Vol. 71 No. 8
Newsline
Agreement Reached To Create More Green Infrastructure In San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Baykeeper and the city of San José announced a legal agreement to make the Bay Area’s largest city a greener one. As part of the agreement, San José has committed to make significant future environmental investments by implementing more stormwater capture projects, or “green infrastructure.” The anticipated long-term benefits include a reduction in pollutants entering creeks, recharging of groundwater supplies and beautification of the city landscape.
Urban stormwater runoff is considered to be the largest source of pollution in the San Francisco Bay. When rain falls on streets, roofs, parking lots and other hard surfaces, it washes trash and other pollutants into gutters and storm drains. In most area cities, storm drains empty directly into the Bay, or into local creeks and rivers that flow to the Bay, without filtration or treatment.
In addition to its commitment to implement a more robust green infrastructure program, San José will take further measures to target trash and potential sewage discharges. The City will provide $1 million to the San José Parks Foundation for installation of more capture systems that collect trash from stormwater before it reaches rivers and streams, and for improvement of its sanitary sewer system to prevent sewage from potentially migrating into the storm sewer system.
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