As Northeast Ohioans hold their breath under flash flood warnings today, we look to answers that can slow the flood of water. Land-use decisions and impervious surfaces are leading factors in our urban flood problem.

The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District plans to establish a stormwater agency by the end of the year to deal with their impact. The plan is to charge a fee based on how much paved or hard surface is on your property. The fee could raise tens of millions to help cities reduce their flooding and impacts on local rivers and the Lake through green infrastructure projects. For more, read “A regional stormwater agency: What should we expect?”

In Illinois, the state has taken the first step toward more sustainable stormwater management. The Green Infrastructure for Clean Water Act requires the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) to report to the Legislature and Governor’s Office on stormwater management techniques that capture raindrops where they fall. Green infrastructure preserves and enhances natural drainage systems which reduce the amount of stormwater that must be collected in pipes and treated or discharged to our surface waters.

On the other side of the fence, 10,000 Rain Gardens is a grassroots campaign that is mobilizing citizens and businesses in the Kansas City area to dig and plant their way toward a flooding solution.

10,000 rain gardens may not halt the Sewer District’s plans for underground pipes, but distributing the infiltration of rain across a city can reduce the amount of sewage overflow events that pollute our rivers and streams today instead of waiting 30 years for the perfect, centralized solution.

"Stormwater" falls into the jargon trap, and can turn off a lot of people. Admittedly, the stormwater discussion has been dominated by the technicians and even the green solutions are often less than artful. In an inspired turn, ten Akron teens have been converting plain plastic rain barrels into works of functional art as participants in Arts LIFT.