Note from Storm: The field of infrastructure renewal is vast and multifaceted, even when we’re just talking about water infrastructure. Restoring rivers, estuaries, and oceans requires a mix of replacing outdated facilities or designs, renovating again-but-functional facilities, and switching to another paradigm entirely.
On April 22, 2015, EPA Region 3 (headquartered in Philadelphia, PA) released a publication titled, Community Based Public-Private Partnerships (CBP3) and Alternative Market-Based Tools for Integrated Green Stormwater Infrastructure: A Guide for Local Governments. This guide comes out of a multi-year effort by EPA Region 3 and our partners to identify tools to help Mid-Atlantic communities to address their water quality challenges through faster, cheaper, and greener methods.
Input for this guide came from experts across a variety of sectors, including public infrastructure financing, green infrastructure design/delivery, investment/finance, economic development, renewable energy and military housing, among others. The Guide is intended for a variety of audiences, including, but not limited to, lawyers, finance specialists, P3 experts, public officials, economic developers, stormwater and green infrastructure practitioners and managers, decision-makers, and regulators.
Specifically, this report introduces the Community-Based Public-Private Partnership (CBP3) approach as a flexible, performance-based platform for implementing affordable, integrated green stormwater infrastructure to meet a variety of regulatory and community needs. The Guide also provides background information on traditional P3s in the U.S., and how this paradigm differs from the CBP3 model. Further, the Guide goes into detail on the financing alternatives as well as market-based tools.