What’s A Sponge City?
Sponge cities are urban areas that have redesigned their infrastructure in order to better collect rainwater. Usually this means replacing impermeable surfaces, like concrete and other firm surfaces, with permeable ones, like dirt, grass, and plants. Sponge cities also build “spreading grounds” where water can easily accumulate and soak into the earth.
New Local Water
The recent atmospheric rivers, like the Pineapple Express, have caused torrential rainfall in Los Angeles County. While all this relentless rain in Los Angeles has been difficult for all of us in many different ways, it’s also been an opportunity to test out the city’s new “sponge” infrastructure. Los Angeles has long been reliant on outside water sources piped in from afar, but now the city is on a mission to produce as much water as it can locally. And they’re succeeding. Between February 4-7 alone, L.A. captured 8.6 billion gallons of stormwater which is enough to provide water to 106,000 households for a year.
More Green Spaces
The new mindset treats stormwater as an asset to be captured, not a liability. Which is for the best since extreme weather conditions will continue to increase in this new climate reality. The easiest way to make cities more spongey is to add more gardens and other green spaces that can soak up the rainwater. It’s a sustainable and beautiful solution with beneficial results. Los Angeles is leading the way in new sustainability.