Solutions

Nashville uses storm drains adoption to fight localized flooding

NASHVILLE, Tenn, — Metro Nashville has a new way to prevent neighborhood flooding, like middle Tennessee has seen all-too-often this spring. The program calls for more than 40,000 volunteers to adopt storm drains around the Nashville area. "You’ll see leaves, yard clippings, any type of debris, a lot of litter, Styrofoam cups, trash bags, and all that sitting on top of a storm drain can prevent the water from getting into it.” Sonia Allman said. Allman is with Metro Water Services. She said clogged storm drains are a big part of the problem in Nashville.

The large-scale adoption effort is spearheaded by the Nashville Clean Water Project. Mark Thien is the group’s executive director. "There’s 44,000 storm drains," Thien said. "This entire system is built with GIS-enabled software. It’s Esri software, which is industry-leading for the development community. Literally you can sit in your office and pick one on your computer or you can pick one on your phone." Kelly Stewart is founder of the Nashville hiking meet-up. The outdoorsman recently adopted three storm drains near his home in Nipper’s Corner. He’s hoping to convince his hiking friends and neighbors to do the same. “Doesn’t really interrupt what […]

Full article: Nashville uses storm drain adoption to fight localized flooding