密歇根新闻广播 利用绿色基础设施减少洪水

 

How can cities reduce flooding caused by increasingly intense rain storms?

More often, it's flooding in areas not known for a lot of flooding in the past. That happened in Detroit in 2014. It caught everyone by surprise as interstates and neighborhoods were suddenly under water.

Pat Bosch lives in the Outer Drive Conner neighborhood in northeast Detroit. She says the natural floodplains have sometimes disappeared.

"When we researched the history of our neighborhood, we were shocked that once Conner Creek¹ flowed as a natural body of water through the whole northeast side. But, slowly the city encroached on it and ultimately made it into the city sewer² system. Mother Nature always wins. So, how do we mitigate³ it now?"

Organizations have been collaborating⁴ to see where things such as rain gardens can be incorporated along existing greenways and trails.

Khalil Ligon is a community sustainability planner with the Alliance for the Great Lakes. At a meeting this week with the Conner Creek area of northeast Detroit, she explained how they can slow down the stormwater and let it soak into the ground rather than flood the streets.

"We saw this opportunity to look at these greenway trails that course through these neighborhoods that have been experiencing a lot of flooding to say hey, what it we looked at green infrastructure⁵ so that we could start to potentially alleviate⁶ some of those flooding concerns, but also have an opportunity to address things like blight⁷ and beautification which are also very important to residents as well," Ligon said.

Ligon's group is working with the Detroit Greenways Coalition⁸ one neighborhood at a time. The network of greenways adds up.

"So, if you can imagine our trail is eight-and-a-half miles long, from Eight Mile to the river. If that entire trail was a sponge, that could alleviate some of the flooding issues that we know about today."

But there's confusion about what's being proposed. Making things look pretty is good, but a bioswale sounds like it could be nothing more than a ditch full of weeds. It's actually more than that. It's a depression filled with natural plants and flowers that captures storm water runoff and helps it soak into the ground.

Explaining things like that to residents is one part of this effort. They're also asking neighbors to help design the green infrastructure.

"Our idea was to reach out to communities, use them to help us build a three-dimensional computer representation of the landscape that would help them make decisions about green infrastructure," said Victoria Campbell-Arvai with the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability. "In the past, design has been very top-down. What we wanted to do is use this for an opportunity to create more of a bottom up process."

I ask Campbell-Avari's colleague, Mark Lindquist, whether any themes have emerged as they've talked to residents.

"Initially⁹ we thought it was going to be primarily driven by flooding and storm water issues" said Lindquist, "but a lot of it is about recreation, places for people, places to grow food, places to congregate¹⁰."

Rain gardens and plantings are just part of the plan. Hard surface areas along the greenways can be built –not with concrete – but with permeable material that will help soak up the rain.

If all the trails and greenways are transformed to help reduce flooding, it will help, but it still won't be enough. Khalil Ligon says that's why they need to get the big construction projects to include green infrastructure.

"Since those are immediate¹¹ opportunities that's kind of whom we're targeting. So, the departments of transportation and the Great Lakes Water Authority, those who are going to be doing significant infrastructure projects, asking them to incorporate some of these ideas and practices into their work."

The argument is that green infrastructure will cost a lot less than flood damage. It also will help prevent the pollution that happens when sewer systems overflow¹² into the Detroit River and eventually the Great Lakes.

1 creek   

n.小溪，小河，小湾

参考例句：

• He sprang through the creek.他跳过小河。
• People sunbathe in the nude on the rocks above the creek.人们在露出小溪的岩石上裸体晒日光浴。

2 sewer   

n.排水沟，下水道

参考例句：

• They are tearing up the street to repair a sewer. 他们正挖开马路修下水道。
• The boy kicked a stone into the sewer. 那个男孩把一石子踢进了下水道。

3 mitigate   

vt.（使）减轻，（使）缓和

参考例句：

• The government is trying to mitigate the effects of inflation.政府正试图缓和通货膨胀的影响。
• Governments should endeavour to mitigate distress.政府应努力缓解贫困问题。

4 collaborating   

合作( collaborate的现在分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• Joe is collaborating on the work with a friend. 乔正与一位朋友合作做那件工作。
• He was not only learning from but also collaborating with Joseph Thomson. 他不仅是在跟约瑟福？汤姆逊学习，而且也是在和他合作。

5 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

6 alleviate   

v.减轻，缓和，缓解(痛苦等)

参考例句：

• The doctor gave her an injection to alleviate the pain.医生给她注射以减轻疼痛。
• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。

7 blight   

n.枯萎病；造成破坏的因素；vt.破坏，摧残

参考例句：

• The apple crop was wiped out by blight.枯萎病使苹果全无收成。
• There is a blight on all his efforts.他的一切努力都遭到挫折。

8 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

9 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

10 congregate   

v.(使)集合，聚集

参考例句：

• Now they can offer a digital place for their readers to congregate and talk.现在他们可以为读者提供一个数字化空间，让读者可以聚集和交谈。
• This is a place where swans congregate.这是个天鹅聚集地。

11 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

12 overflow   

v.(使)外溢，(使)溢出；溢出，流出，漫出

参考例句：

• The overflow from the bath ran on to the floor.浴缸里的水溢到了地板上。
• After a long period of rain,the river may overflow its banks.长时间的下雨天后，河水可能溢出岸来。