Field building for the national GSI industry

The State of Public Sector Green Stormwater Infrastructure

Through our work leading green infrastructure (GI) projects across the country, we shared a growing national concern that there is no standard way for governments to measure and report their GI efforts. To help address this, the Green Infrastructure Leadership Exchange, with funding from The JPB Foundation and Pieces Foundation, hired Greenprint to develop the State of Public Sector Green Stormwater Infrastructure report and its accompanying data dashboard. This study will be repeated every three years, offering the first nationwide dataset and analysis of public sector GI implementation.

Over the course of a year, we facilitated a national advisory committee to guide the research, and gathered data from 52 public stormwater organizations across 27 states to create a national baseline for GI implementation. Our goal was to develop a blueprint that helps local governments improve their projects to better serve communities. The report provides the first national dataset on public sector GI and offers a data-driven guide to make GI projects more effective.

The research had three key goals:

1. Understand the current state of GI implementation and assess the drivers, barriers and levers that influence its adoption
2. Move the industry toward a shared GI standard that includes equity, community engagement, co-benefits and long-term maintenance, aligning with the national One Water framework
3. Offer recommendations to help the public sector and other stakeholders scale GI efforts to better serve communities

The report addresses crucial questions surrounding GI, such as the key drivers and barriers to implementation, the most effective levers for scaling, and where GI is being built. It identifies characteristics of high-impact GI and proposes them as a national standard:

• Center the community
• Design for multiple benefits
• Prioritize vegetative practices where feasible
• Maintain for the long term
• Regularly inspect for performance
• Evaluate for impact

By identifying key challenges and opportunities, it aims to help governments better direct resources toward projects with the greatest potential to scale community-centered solutions. This baseline report establishes a foundation for a more standardized approach to public sector GI. By promoting a shared blueprint that prioritizes equity, multiple benefits and long-term sustainability, it guides the industry toward a unified standard within the One Water framework, ultimately helping communities across the nation.