Staying Green: Joint Reports on Operations and Maintenance of Green Infrastructure in the Chesapeake Bay
Without proper maintenance, any type of infrastructure can lose functionality and ultimately fail. As more communities move towards adopting green infrastructure as a cost-effective approach to manage polluted runoff, it is critical that local governments address barriers to operations and maintenance. Despite the benefits of green infrastructure, operations and maintenance has been repeatedly raised as a technical barrier to adoption of green infrastructure and remains a concern for many local governments in the Chesapeake Bay region and across the country.
American Rivers and Green for All collaborated to develop two companion reports exploring different elements of operations and maintenance of green infrastructure in the region. The Staying Green: Strategies to Improve Operations and Maintenance of Green Infrastructure in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed report highlights existing information related to costs of green infrastructure maintenance, identifies the significant barriers to effective operations and maintenance of these practices, recommends strategies to improve operations and maintenance, and provides resources and case studies that local governments can use as models.
Our companion report, Staying Green and Growing Jobs: Green Infrastructure Operations and Maintenance as Career Pathway Stepping Stones, assesses existing and potential occupations in green infrastructure operations and maintenance, highlights existing workforce development programs that can provide models for local governments or community organizations, and recommends strategies to improve career opportunities and job quality in the field of green infrastructure operations and maintenance.