UVa helps Lynchburg plan ‘green’ city

By Sarah Watson

Published: November 16, 2008

It’s not just about trees.

if you’re going

-What: Green infrastructure community workshop
-Where: Lynchburg Community Market
-When: 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday
The meeting is set up as an open house so attendees can come at any time and leave when they want.

Yes, a large tree canopy such as those that exist in parts of Lynchburg can clean the air, take up storm water and keep temperatures cool in the heat of the summer. But that’s only a portion of the city’s green infrastructure.

Those environmental assets —such as trees, waterways and trails — are at the heart of a unique partnership between Lynchburg and a University of Virginia urban and environmental planning class. The students, taught by UVa adjunct professor Karen Firehock, are taking stock of that green infrastructure so the city can maximize planning efforts.

Infrastructure generally refers to the gray — pavement, roads, pipes, power lines, “all of the built environment that cities need to function,” Firehock said.

“But cities also need green infrastructure. They need tree canopies, clean drinking water, good soil. We need to plan for making sure we are maximizing that green infrastructure just as we do with gray infrastructure.”

The project was started this summer and will be complete by the end of the year. Wednesday, the group will hold a public meeting so city residents can weigh in with their opinions, which Firehock says is a critical part of the project.

“We really encourage people to come and share their ideas,” she said. “What we really don’t want is for graduate students working on their own and not touching base with what the community wants.”

While city officials have met with the students and given information for their work, “we really haven’t had to put a lot of time into this. The students really have been doing all the work,” said Lynchburg environmental planner Erin Hawkins. “The great thing about this type of partnership is that great work comes out of it free of charge to the city and its citizens.”

Lynchburg is the third Virginia locality to be involved. Charlottesville was the first two years ago, Firehock said. That project was so successful that the city adopted the recommendations into its comprehensive plan, something that Hawkins said could be a possibility here.

“It’s certainly my hope that their hard work will not sit on a shelf,” she said.

The other locality Firehock’s students have worked with is Madison County, which resulted in an analysis of the relatively rural county’s forest cover.

Firehock, an environmental planner who runs the Charlottesville nonprofit Green Infrastructure Center, said the class’s focus is to give urban-planning graduate students real-world experience by taking part in the Green Community Connections Project.

Among the topics the students are assessing in Lynchburg are mapping the city’s tree canopy and taking stock of habitat and buffers along waterways, Firehock said. That assessment will show which parts of the city need work and the parts that already have excellent resources.

A 100-foot forested stream buffer can remove up to 90 percent of various pollutants that normally run off into urbanized streams, Firehock said. Additionally, trees in those key areas can stabilize eroding stream banks, she said.

The city’s trail system also is being assessed as part of the project, Firehock said. “It’s a pretty walkable city right now, but there are other connections that could be made.”

The ultimate product will be a series of digital maps that detail the city’s forest canopy, stream buffers and trail connections along with recommendations on how the city can implement these ideas into its planning process, Firehock said.

“All the work that the grad students are doing will be to advise the city on how they can create a city that’s more environmentally sustainable and healthy for its citizens,” she said.