May 23, 2018

Hoboken Works to Adapt to Climate Change Impacts on Water

Hoboken, NJ - Tuesday, April 24th, 2018

As a dense coastal City, Hoboken is particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts including rising sea levels and more frequent and intense storm events. Hoboken is adapting to these impacts by managing all water – drinking water, stormwater, wastewater – in an integrated and inclusive manner as “one water.” With this one water approach, the City will improve all water infrastructure to ensure reliability and achieve multiple benefits across natural and built hydrologic systems.

The City of Hoboken is undertaking the following water projects in 2018:

  • Complete the Washington Street project to upgrade 1.25 miles of water mains and invest more than $5 million to upgrade 1.6 miles of water mains, the first phase of a comprehensive water system renewal plan.
  • Advance the City’s comprehensive water management strategy to reduce coastal and rainfall flooding called “resist, delay, store, discharge.” The City will continue working closely with NJDEP to design the “resist” portion of the strategy, a mix of hard infrastructure and soft landscaping features, such as an expanded Harborside Park, that act as barriers along the coast during high tide and storm surge events, www.rbd-hudsonriver.nj.gov. The City will also continue partnering with NHSA to implement the “delay, store, discharge” portions of the strategy, such as the Northwest Resiliency Park, www.hobokennj.gov/nwpark.
  • Partner with NHSA to redesign roadways and drainage systems in the area of 9th Street and Madison Street.
  • Continue the first green infrastructure volunteer impact program which provides hands-on training in green infrastructure maintenance for Housing Authority residents and Hoboken youth, thanks to support from Cities of Service and the Walmart Foundation. www.hobokennj.gov/greenjobs.

Residents are invited to learn more about these projects at events today, April 24, including:

  • BYO lunch-and-learn green infrastructure tour of Southwest Park starting at 12 PM at the Hoboken Housing Authority, 400 Harrison Street.
  • BYO bike-and-learn tour of Rebuild by Design coastal flood mitigation project starting at 1 PM at Hoboken City Hall, 94 Washington Street.
  • GI 101: introduction to green infrastructure starting at 4 PM at Stevens Institute of Technology North Building Room 101 (between 8th and 9th Streets on the Stevens Campus)
  • Earth Week One Water Workshop at 7 PM at Mulligan’s, 159 1st Street. The workshop will help residents and businesses understand planned water infrastructure improvements with a presentation by the City of Hoboken. It will conclude with a screening of the movie Before the Flood.

For more information about Earth Week events, visit www.facebook.com/hobokengreenteam.