Green Infrastructure Plan

City council approved the Green Infrastructure Plan on September 17, 2019

On November 19, 2015, the San Francisco Regional Water Resource Control Board adopted the reissuance of the Municipal Regional Stormwater NPDES Permit No CAS612008 (MRP 2.0). This updated permit became effective on January 1, 2016 and one of the significant changes in the updated permit is the requirement for Green Infrastructure (GI). MRP 2.0 requires the City of Richmond, one of 76 local agencies in the San Francisco Bay region, to develop a Green Infrastructure Plan (GI Plan) by September 2019. This GI Plan will change how the City plans, designs, builds, and maintains public transportation and drainage infrastructure.

The City of Richmond GI Plan will guide a shift from conventional “collect and convey” storm drain infrastructure to more resilient, sustainable stormwater management that improves water quality, reduces runoff volumes and reduces flood risk, disperses runoff to vegetated areas, harvests and uses runoff where feasible, promotes infiltration and evapotranspiration, and uses natural processes to detain and treat runoff. GI facilities include, but are not limited to: pervious pavement, infiltration basins, and bio-retention facilities (“rain gardens” or "bioswales"), green roofs, and rainwater harvesting systems.

Green Infrastructure Plan will contain the following elements:

• Prioritized projects both on public and private land for GI implementation
• Targets for the amount of impervious surface to be retrofitted by 2020, 2030, and 2040
• Mechanism to track or map completed projects
• General guidelines for overall streetscape and project design and construction
• Standard specification and typical design details for projects
• Funding mechanisms and/or options
• Updates of planning documentation to include the implementation of GI Plan (i.e. General Plan, Urban Greening Master Plan, Climate Action Plan, Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan, specific plans)
• Policies and ordinances necessary for the implementation of GI Plan
• Outreach and Education

If you have any questions regarding the development of GI Plan, please contact Joanne Le, at (510) 620-6540 or joanne_le@ci.richmond.ca.us