United States
Environmental Protection
*m Agency
2013 GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Pima County Regional Flood Control District and City of Tucson
Tucson, AZ
Green
Infrastructure
Tools for Arid
and Semiarid
Regions
TUCSON, ARIZONA
Project Summary
The Pima County Regional Flood Control
District and the City of Tucson have
collaborated in developing the Low
Impact Development and Green
Infrastructure Guidance Manual. The
manual provides guidance for
implementing neighborhood-scale
water harvesting, green infrastructure,
and low impact development practices
throughout Pima County to improve
surface water quality. The most up-to-
date version of the manual can be
downloaded from Pima County's Web
page.
The manual provides an in-depth
discussion of green infrastructure / low
impact development site assessment,
planning, and design process and site
planning practices. It presents technical
guidance on howto design, install, and
maintain structural green infrastructure
practices. The manual also outlines the
common components of green
infrastructure (e.g., inlets, outlets, check
dams, soil amendments, and vegetation)
and howto use them in green
infrastructure designs. Finally, the
manual includes guidance on sizing
practices and selecting native and locally
adapted plants for vegetated features.
Through the Green Infrastructure
Technical Assistance Program, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
provided supporttothe Pima County
Regional Flood Control District and the
City of Tucson to enhance the manual.
EPA developed a menu of outreach
options to promote the manual and
green infrastructure implementation, as
outlined in Table 1. EPA also performed
a third-party technical review of the
manual, added technical content and
literature references throughout, and
developed engineering design templates
and standard details for structural green
infrastructure practices.
EPA anticipates that other communities
will be able to benefit from the guidance
developed by the Pima County Regional
Flood Control District and City of
Tucson, particularly communities in arid
and semiarid areas and those interested
in improving their resilience to
prolonged drought and uncertain rainfall
patterns caused by climate change. The
outreach options presented in Table 1
also can be used by others who seek to
educate and engage green infrastructure
designers and the development
community in promoting widespread
green infrastructure implementation.

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2013 GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
Pima County/Tucson, AZ
2
Outreach for the	Low Imp
Green Infrastructure Guidance Manual
The Pima County Regional Flood Control
District and the City of Tucson are
implementing a joint outreach and
education program to promote the
planning, design, and implementation
concepts outlined in their manual.
Integrating green infrastructure
practices into new development and
redevelopment projects in southern
Arizona will largely depend on adoption
of the concepts by professionals
involved in design, engineering,
architecture, landscaping, and other
specialties. Some basic level of support
also will be required from property
owners, managers, and lending
institutions.
Crafting an outreach and education
program forthose target audiences
requires careful consideration of the
engineering, scientific, technical,
construction, operation, and
maintenance aspects of green
infrastructure.
For example, can the integrated
components and the design concepts
they support be addressed most
successfully in a single workshop,
through online versus live training, or in
presentations versus interactive
formats? How much time should be
devoted to rollout meetings,
presentations, and training? How can
participation of members of the target
audiences be ensured?
Table I summarizes various approaches
to outreach and education that promote
rollout of the guidance manual. The list
of options in the table is not exhaustive
but is intended to spur brainstorming
and discussion among city and county
personnel on the best way to engage the
target audience(s) in improving their
understanding of—and support for—
green infrastructure.
Venues, advantages and disadvantages,
costs, and planning time for each option
are general estimates offered to provide
some sense of context and
proportionality to deliberations on a
final rollout plan.
The approaches summarized in the table
address only the initial phase of the
outreach and education program forthe
manual. It is likely that additional
workshops, webinars, and other events
will be required to maintain momentum
and support for green infrastructure.
The best strategy for implementing a
longerterm program of outreach and
education will become more evident
afterthis initial phase is complete.
Table I. Outreach options for rolling out the Pima County/City of Tucson Low Impact Development and Green Infrastructure
Guidance Manual
Outreach Format
Advantages
Disadvantages
Relative Costa
Planning
Time
Emailed message with a
Web link to the
guidance manual sent
to targeted individuals
encouraging its usebc
•	No limit on intended recipients
•	Can use feedback to edit manual
•	Low commitment of resources
•	Can be used to track receipt and
follow-through of messages
•	Impersonal, detached outreach
•	Hard to address questions, concerns
•	Complex topics might be difficult to
explain concisely in an email
•	Email addresses can become
outdated and hard to obtain if you do
not already have a sufficient list or
database
Very Low
2-3 weeks
Mailed hardcopy
guidance manual to
targeted individuals
with a letter
encouraging its use
•	More personal than email message
•	Hardcopy more likely to be reviewed
•	Fairly low commitment versus live
training
•	Manual might be shelved without
follow-up
•	Difficult to gauge reaction of target
audience
•	Complex topics might be difficult to
explain concisely in a discussion
setting
Lowd
4-6 weeks

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2013 GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM | Pima County/Tucson, AZ	3
Outreach Format
Advantages
Disadvantages
Relative Costa
Planning
Time
2-hour meeting with
target audience to
distribute and discuss
manual
•	Live meeting improves interaction
•	Better solicitation of questions,
comments
•	In-person testimonials increase
support
•	Limited time, mostly for one-way
talks
•	Not enough time for detailed
discussion
•	Interest will lag if no follow-up
Low
4-6 weeks
Half-day workshop on
guidance manual for
target audiencee
•	More time allows detailed discussion
•	Suggests higher level of commitment
•	More time for networking
•	Might engage audience to seek out
more information or become more
involved
•	Still not enough time for detailed talks
•	Requires more planning, resources
Moderate'
6-8 weeks
Full-day workshop on
guidance manual for
target audienceError!
Bookmark not defined.
•	Provides for deeper discussion
•	Time for breakouts, design exercises
•	Can include case study displays and
other visual aids
•	Higher level of planning, resources
needed
•	Difficult for attendees to attend a full
day
•	One-time event is hit or miss
ModerateError!
Bookmark not
defined.
12-14
weeksฎ
Design competition for
target audience
involving hypothetical
project(s) at a real site
•	Promotes interest, involvement
•	Can be coupled with live/Web
training
•	High level of publicity possible
•	End result can be an on-the-ground
project
•	Serves as a teaching/marketing tool
•	Takes planning, resources to support
•	Judging "winners" might be difficult
•	Difficult to know level of participation
in advance
•	Need to have a good incentive for
participation (e.g., cash award)
High
3-4 months
Series of Web-based
workshops (4 x 2-hour)
on the guidance manual
•	Attendees can participate at home or
office
•	Allows in-depth treatment of topic
areas
•	Can be archived for later viewing
•	Requires high level of planning,
resources
•	Requires excellent, technically adept
speakers
•	Not as personal, interactive as live
sessions
High
4-6 months
Series of design
workshops/ charrettes
(4 x 2-hour) on the
guidance manual
•	Ability to address significant detail
•	Small groups allow more interaction
•	Easier for audience to attend shorter
events
•	Scheduling conflicts could hurt
attendance
•	Greater time commitment by
audience
•	More resources required to
implement
Very High
4-6 months
Notes
a Very Low: less than $1,000; Low: $1,000-5,000; Moderate: $5,000-10,000; High: $10,000-15,000; Very High: more than $15,000
b An email service that can send HTML-formatted emails with pictures and hyperlinks might have more traction. Some e-mail services can provide traffic statistics (e.g.,
how many people clicked on the email, clicked on a hyperlink in the email, and received the email but did not open it upon receipt). Design of an HTML-enabled email
template can add several thousand dollars to the cost of content development.
c Monthly emails can be sent after the initial email that focus on one practice or topic to spur more interest and provide additional details.
d Relative cost does not include the cost of printing hardcopies of the manual.
e Educational or professional credits can be offered to encourage participation in workshops. Additional planning and partnering with a university or other accredited
training institution would be required.
f A fee can be charged to offset some of the costs of the workshop,
a Timeframe allows for publicity and event registration.

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2013 GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM | Pima County/Tucson, AZ
About the Green Infrastructure Technical
Assistance Program
Stormwater runoff is a major cause of
water pollution in urban areas. When
rain falls in undeveloped areas, soil and
plants absorb and filter the water. When
rain falls on our roofs, streets, and
parking lots, however, the water cannot
soak into the ground. In most urban
areas, stormwater is drained through
engineered collection systems and
discharged into nearby water bodies.
The stormwater carries trash, bacteria,
heavy metals, and other pollutants from
the urban landscape, polluting the
receiving waters. Higher flows also can
cause erosion and flooding in urban
streams, damaging habitat, property,
and infrastructure.
Green infrastructure uses vegetation,
soils, and natural processes to manage
water and create healthier urban
environments. At the scale of a city or
county, green infrastructure refers to the
patchwork of natural areas that provides
habitat, flood protection, cleaner air,
and cleaner water. At the scale of a
neighborhood or site, green
infrastructure refers to stormwater
management systems that mimic nature
by soaking up and storing water.
Green infrastructure can be a cost-
effective approach to improving water
quality and helping communities stretch
their infrastructure investments further
by providing multiple environmental,
economic, and community benefits. This
multibenefit approach creates
sustainable and resilient water
infrastructure that supports and
revitalizes urban communities.
EPA encourages communities to use
green infrastructure to help manage
stormwater runoff, reduce sewer
overflows, and improve water quality.
EPA recognizes the value of working
collaboratively with communities to
support broader adoption of green
infrastructure approaches.
Technical assistance is a key component
to accelerating the implementation of
green infrastructure across the nation
and aligns with EPA's commitment to
provide community-focused outreach
and support the President's Priority
Agenda Enhancing the Climate Resilience
of America's Natural Resources.
Creating more resilient systems wj|
become increasingly important in the
face of climate change. As more intense
weather events and dwindling water
supplies stress the performance of the
nation's water infrastructure, green
infrastructure offers an approach to
increase resiliency and adaptability.
For more information, visit
www.epa.gov/areeninfrastructure.
Acknowledgements
Principal EPA Team
Jamie Piziali, EPA
Christopher Kloss, EPA
Mahri Monson, EPA
Laura Bose, EPA Region 9
Community Team
Lynn Orchard, Pima County
Regional Flood Control District
Evan Canfield, Pima County
Regional Flood Control District
Irene Ogata, City of Tucson
Consultant Team
Jason Wright, Tetra Tech
Brad Wardynski, Tetra Tech
Martina Frey, Tetra Tech
Barry Tonning, Tetra Tech
This report was developed under EPA
Contract No. EP-C-11-oog as part of
the 2013 EPA Green Infrastructure
Technical Assistance Program.
EPA-832-R-16-010

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