Ramboll conducts water climate mitigation study for New York
Changes to global climate change may create considerable headache for cities as infrastructure ceases to cope with new weather patterns. In a bid to create a sustainable water resources plan, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection has hired Ramboll to conduct a study into the cities' storm water system in relation to changes in climate – which, among others, will seek to combine socio-economic aspects with blue-green infrastructure.
The effect of climate change on weather has the potential to create considerable unpredictability in the long term. Companies and governments are scrambling to create mitigation programmes that protect key assets, techniques include blue-green infrastructure.
The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) provides a range of key services to the city of New York, including supplying water to the city’s residence, managing toxic site remediation, enforcing the city’s air and noise codes, collecting water and sewer bills, as well as running water conservation programmes.
It was recently announced that the DEP has hired Ramboll to develop a study into best practices to shore up the city against climate threats as well as creating a more sustainable water cycle. The study is titled 'Cloudburst Resiliency Planning Study – Best Practices for Managing Stormwater in a Changing Climate'.
The study will seek to identify the costs and benefits of bringing together the phenomenon of heavy rainfall into wider planning and future investments for climate adaptions within the city. The study will leverage the firm’s experience in combining socio-economic planning with climate mitigation solutions – in a bid to create stakeholder wide engagement in projects that improve not merely sustainability and resilience to climate changes, but also economic and social benefits to communities.
Jonathan Leonardsen, Consultant at Ramboll remarks that: “If a climate adaption project takes into account the recreational value, and by this the likely increase in real estate prices for instance, a bigger coalition can be formed. So by engaging numerous stakeholders and estimate their return on investment, cities will not only broaden the span of project possibilities but equally create economic leverage, buy-in and co-ownership."
Christian Nyerup Nielsen, Leader at Ramboll’s Climate Adaptation and Flood-Risk Management practice, says "This is a very exciting project where we combine our technical and socio-economic competences in order to support one of the world's most amazing cities with their important efforts on climate adaptation and blue-green infrastructure.”
Ramboll was recently also hired by the city of Skellefteå, in Sweden, for their water expertise, as chief consultant for the improvement of its water treatment plan.
