The RainReady℠ program, an initiative of the Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT), has received a $30,000 EPA Environmental Justice Award. The grant will be used to support CNT’s work helping homeowners reduce sewer backups and flooding in Chatham, a neighborhood on Chicago’s South Side. The work is being done in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

 “We’re very grateful to the EPA. This comes at a critical time as cities like Chicago brace for more frequent and severe flooding. Global climate change is increasing heavy rainfall, and the proliferation of impervious surfaces like roads and parking lots prevent that water from being absorbed into the ground,” CNT’s CEO Kathryn Tholin said. “This grant will help us design low-cost approaches, such as downspout disconnection and rain gardens, to help homeowners tackle their flooding problems.”

RainReady is an innovative program that helps residents and communities implement quick, affordable solutions to prevent urban flooding. The RainReady team prioritizes nature-based strategies designed to bring environmental and public health benefits, such as reducing carbon emissions and other forms of air pollution through tree planting, increasing groundwater recharge, decreasing pollution in local bodies of water, reducing energy use and increasing biodiversity. 

CNT’s 2014 study, The Prevalence and Cost of Urban Flooding, found that property owners, taxpayers and insurance companies are paying a high price for chronic flooding. The analysis, based on insurance and federal disaster damage payouts made to property owners between 2007-2011 in Cook County, Ill., found that flooding is systemic and not confined to designated floodplains. Over 181,000 damage payouts were made across 97 percent of Cook County, resulting in an average payout of $4,272 per insurance claim. The total claims paid exceeded $773 million.

As part of its ongoing flooding research, CNT also conducted a survey of impacted property owners, which illuminated the true magnitude of the health and economic impacts on property owners. The survey found that the costs per property can be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, a cost some homeowners have to bear repeatedly as their homes flood again and again. Eight-four percent of survey respondents suffered from stress because of their flooding, 13 percent experienced illness, 41 percent lost the use of part of their property, 63 percent lost valuables, and 74 percent lost hours of work to clean up.

Chicago’s Chatham neighborhood is particularly affected by urban flooding. Although there are no designated floodplains in the community, CNT’s research found that Chatham had some of the highest flood damage payouts in Cook County, resulting in 16,400 claims and $64 million in payouts.

One Chatham homeowner has already benefited from RainReady’s services. Lori Burns was one of the first homeowners to receive a RainReady Home assessment and upgrade. She installed a backwater valve and a rain garden at her home, and she has used her story to help mobilize her neighbors to encourage their participation in RainReady’s programs.

“As a result of this project, Chatham will have a clear plan of action for tackling its flooding problem,” CNT’s Water Program Director Harriet Festing said. “The lessons learned from this work will be documented and used to help us help other communities.”