ROYAL OAK – Don Carpenter, water expert from Lawrence Technological University, discusses green water infrastructure and what it could mean for cities like Flint in this episode of M2 TechCast.
Green infrastructure is Nature’s way of handling storm water runoff. If lakes, streams, and oceans do not realize we have developed the land adjacent to them, that’s the gold standard of storm water management, Carpenter said. Examples include green roofs, green walls and urban agriculture.
One of the barriers to entry is most engineers don’t have the design tools to deal with storm water runoff in a green way. Also, home owners need to get past the idea that they need green lush lawns. If they planted natural grasses and flowers, it would be much lower maintenance and much better for the environment, he said.
To hear the rest how green infrastructure can provide us with cleaner water, click on https://soundcloud.com/podcastdetroit/m2techcast-47-ltu-green-infrastructure
