Integrated Planning in Action

Prioritizing Clean Water Investments

Introduction

Over the past 50 years, EPA, states, and municipalities have made significant progress protecting our waters through implementation of the  Clean Water Act  (CWA). However, challenges remain. As the nation faces population growth, aging infrastructure, limited resources, and increasing complex water quality issues, new approaches to address CWA requirements are being explored.

Communities managing wastewater treatment facilities, sewer systems, and stormwater infrastructure must prioritize their investments. View a  list of all integrated plans .

In 2012, EPA developed an integrated planning framework that explains how municipalities can prioritize multiple CWA requirements through a voluntary integrated plan while attaining other benefits that beautifies their communities.

By pursuing the highest-priority projects first, integrated planning promotes innovative solutions to improving water quality, such as green infrastructure, which not only helps to meet CWA obligations but also enhances a community's livability.

Holistic planning with extensive stakeholder engagement is leading to the following major benefits for the communities:

  • Faster water quality improvements and health protections.
  • More cost-effective and affordable infrastucture investments.
  • Consideration of investments that support other community objectives.
  • Innovative long-term solutions that reduce pollution sources rather than just controlling or treating discharges.

Background

In June of 2021, EPA released a  Report to Congress on Integrated Plans to Comply with the Water Infrastructure Improvement Act (WIIA) of 2019 . WIIA amended the CWA to include the 2012 Integrated Municipal Stormwater and Wastewater Planning Approach Framework. See the discussion on  WIIA  for details. To date, more than two dozen municipalities have developed integrated plans. Of those, 13 have implemented their plans through a permit, order, or judicial consent decree:  view all 13 printable profiles .

This StoryMap presents municipal integrated planning examples across the United States. The integrated planning success stories shown in the StoryMap below are organized by geographic region and you can select a region of interest from the navigation bar at the top of the StoryMap.

Some commonly used acronyms you will come across in this StoryMap:

  • CSO: Combined sewer overflow
  • LTCP: Long-term control plan
  • MS4: Municipal separate storm sewer system
  • SSO: Sanitary sewer overflow
  • WWTF: Wastewater treatment facility
Integrated planning overview through May 2022: 27 municipalities have developed integrated plans, 50% of plans address three or four sources, 15 plans address CSOs, 12 plans consider climate change or future precipitation projections, and 18 plans include green infrastructure projects.

Map of Municipalities

Northeast

New Bedford, Massachusetts

Springfield, Massachusetts

Mid-Atlantic

Richmond, Virginia

Southeast

Atlanta, Georgia

Great Lakes

Akron, Ohio

Columbus, Ohio

Lima, Ohio

Midwest

Boone, Iowa

Columbia, Missouri

Johnson County, Kansas

Lawrence, Kansas

Springfield, Missouri

Pacific Southwest

Pacific Northwest

Seattle, Washington