Chicago’s GSI Maintenance Working Group: A Multi-Agency Effort to Address Coordinated Maintenance for Green Stormwater Infrastructure in Chicago
December 1, 2023
Chicago faces growing challenges from climate change, including more frequent and intense storms, urban flooding and aging sewer infrastructure that disproportionately affect low-income Black and Latinx communities. Green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) offers powerful solutions, but too often projects are installed without the long-term resources or coordination needed to sustain them. When maintenance falls short, communities lose out on the resilience and health benefits GSI is designed to provide.
This report shares findings from the Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) Maintenance Working Group, co-convened by Healthy Schools Campaign and Openlands with the Chicago Mayor’s Office and now the Chicago Department of Environment. It highlights barriers that prevent sustainable GSI maintenance, lessons learned from local and national examples and opportunities to improve interagency collaboration. The report also offers a set of recommendations for building a citywide, coordinated approach to GSI maintenance that centers equity and community needs — ensuring these critical climate investments are effective, resilient and built to last.
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