Green Infrastructure and Houselessness Blog Series: Part 1 -An Introduction
By Jessie McGinley, Water Policy Intern
This first blog of the Green Infrastructure and Houselessness Blog Series introduces the ways green infrastructure and houselessness can impact one another. As climate change increasingly impacts communities with extreme events such as storms and hurricanes, it is critical that communities adapt and implement sustainable stormwater infrastructure, while also prioritizing the most vulnerable communities. Green infrastructure projects can be of immense benefit to community members, but they can also create disastrous effects including displacement and exclusion.
Increasingly intense storm events are putting densely populated cities at risk. In concrete urban areas, water is not able to infiltrate into the ground, increasing the likelihood of catastrophic flooding. This poses a huge threat to urban populations, especially those who are unsheltered. About 60% of unsheltered people in the United States are living in urban areas. Since there is such a high population of unsheltered people in cities and more cities are installing green infrastructure, it is critical to fully understand the consequences, both positive and negative, of urban green infrastructure on community members who are unsheltered.
It is time to stop ignoring our unsheltered neighbors and include everyone in the environmental justice movement.
As of January 2020, there were approximately 580,000 people experiencing homelessness in the United States. Many people experiencing homelessness are not sheltered and often live in urban areas such as parking lots, under bridges, sidewalks, and parks. During times of storms, hurricanes, and floods, unsheltered communities face dangers to their health and safety. It is necessary that climate action is first and foremost centered on working with the most vulnerable communities including people who are unsheltered. Fortunately, there is a natural based solution that could help combat this issue: green infrastructure.
Examples of Green Infrastructure from A Review on Applications of Urban Flood Models in Flood Mitigation Strategies figure from Natural Hazards
Green infrastructure is a stormwater management tool that utilizes natural based processes. Some examples of green infrastructure include planting greenery along sidewalks, rain gardens, and green rooftops; all of this infrastructure filters and absorbs stormwater, thus controlling and reducing urban flooding. Green infrastructure can be more cost effective than other, non-nature-based stormwater infrastructure solutions. Additionally, green infrastructure provides other benefits that non-nature-based infrastructure does not provide such as climate resiliency, habitat restoration, and improved air quality. However, green infrastructure projects that successfully manage stormwater runoff are not always entirely beneficial to the community. For example, the New York High Line project transformed an old railway into a green park in 2009. Many people strongly dislike this project as it has been shown to increase property values and displace local residents and small business owners.
“When we talk about infrastructure, [homelessness] is a huge issue and one that we don’t talk about enough.”
- Francesca de la Rosa, Campaign Manager for Living Schoolyards Coalition at Trust for Public Land
In an interview, Francesca de la Rosa from Trust for Public Land stated “When we talk about infrastructure, [homelessness] is a huge issue and one that we don’t talk about enough.” The goal of this blog series is to help bridge the gap between green infrastructure and houselessness. People who are experiencing houselessness, especially those who are unsheltered, are among the most vulnerable communities when it comes to the climate crisis. However, in many environmental justice spaces, discussions, or actions, it is rare to see the inclusion of the community’s unsheltered neighbors. To prioritize social and environmental justice means to intentionally empower, uplift, and support marginalized communities in all stages of projects including planning, decision making, and implementation. This blanket term, “marginalized communities,” encompasses many different groups of people; Black people, Indigenous people, Latinx people, disabled people, immigrants, low-income people, and queer people, to name just a few. It is important to recognize that each of these communities have specific needs that must be approached in an individualized way driven by the community’s desires. People experiencing houselessness are often not included in this large pool of marginalized communities. Oftentimes, they are not even recognized as human beings. Unsheltered people are among the most vulnerable to the climate crisis, and it is critical to prioritize their needs in climate action work.
Green infrastructure needs to be utilized to help with urban stormwater management, but it needs to be implemented in a way that is most beneficial to all community members. The next blog in this series, Green Infrastructure and Houselessness Blog Series: Part 2 - Potential Harms and Benefits, dives into the different ways green infrastructure could impact communities, specifically those who are unsheltered.