Evaluating Community Perspectives on Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) Solutions through a Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) Approach

Abstract Submission: Community involvement is essential for equitable water infrastructure design, a consideration often neglected in engineering leading to compounded inequities in marginalized communities. This is important in coastal U.S. cities facing heightened flood risks and infrastructural disparities due to climate change and urban expansion. The Houston Metropolitan area (HMA) frequently experiences flooding, exacerbated by aging infrastructure and insufficient drainage. To address these challenges, Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) has been proposed to enhance local drainage and stormwater quality during regular rain events. Our study, conducted in collaboration with Bayou City Waterkeeper, a Houston non-profit organization, aimed to uncover community perspectives in potential GSI adoption through a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach. We deployed surveys to historically marginalized populations in Northeast Houston and Baytown, Texas (n=250), gathering insights on environmental perceptions (environmental conditions, and climate change impacts on flooding), infrastructure assessments (current gray infrastructure and potential GSI implementation), and community needs (personal and perceived community needs, and advocacy). These survey topics were shaped by focus group results, ensuring that community input guided the research process. We hypothesize that survey findings will reveal systemic issues hindering GSI implementation and demonstrate strong community support for GSI's ecosystem services, consistent with focus group findings. Our results underscore the importance of CBPR in equitable GSI design, where combining focused community insights with broader survey data provides a comprehensive understanding capturing both the depth of individual experiences and the breadth of community perspectives.

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