Water and Green Infrastructure

Target: 100 percent of land in the St. Louis region has active organizations and quality watershed plans in progress by 2025 and plans completed by 2030.

Background: A region with protected and enhanced natural systems will improve the performance of its water supply, flood management, and wastewater infrastructure. The Water & Green Infrastructure working group will measure progress by keeping track of water bodies that have been adopted by a clean water group and incorporated into a watershed plan.

Structure: East-West Gateway’s Water Resources Committee (WRC) has been discussing issues related to water quality and watershed planning since 2001. A sub-committee of the WRC will act as the Water and Green Infrastructure Working Group. The WRC will continue to work to keep track of water quality initiatives and to disseminate information on planning, projects, and best practices.

Activities: The WRC conducts quarterly meetings to bring informational content and updates and water related projects hosted at the office of East-West Gateway and virtually including educational tours. The working group acts as a source of technical assistance for groups working on watershed plans. 

Specific actions the group undertakes include:

  • Mapping, maintaining, and evaluating a database of regional water quality efforts
  • Maintaining resources on water quality on ewgateway.org and onestl.org
  • Producing and publishing informational videos such as Labarque Creek restoration

What you can do:

  • Check out resources in the OneSTL Toolkit, including the tools for Rain Barrels and Cisterns. 
  • Find out what watershed you live in and if there’s an active organization to get involved with.
  • Use EPA water quality scorecard to find out about water quality of your local stream -- How's My Waterway
  • If no active watershed organization near you, join the Water and GI working group to get help on forming one.

The following organizations Support* or Commit** to assisting with this Target.

Bi-State Development of the Missouri-Illinois Metropolitan District*
Citizens for Modern Transit*
Curium*
Global Products, Inc**
Green Dining Alliance / St. Louis Earth Day*
Heartlands Conservancy*
International Society of Sustainability Professionals StL Chapter**
Linda Goldstein Consulting*
 		 MBS Urban Initiaves CDE, LLC*
Missouri Coalition for the Environment*
Nine Network of Public Media**
Renew Missouri*
Sitton Energy Solutions*
The Nature Conservancy in Missouri*
University City, MO*
US Green Building Council - Missouri Gateway Chapter*
Washington University in St. Louis*