Low impact development (LID), or green infrastructure, is a comprehensive land planning and engineering approach that promotes sustainabilty through the utilization of natural processes for managing stormwater and protecting watersheds. Not only does LID decrease the negative impacts of development on the surrounding environment and watershed, but it is a cost effective and aesthetically pleasing alternative to traditional approaches to development.

To encourage LID, the NRDC recomends that regulations should be revised to require minimizing and reducing impervious surfaces, protecting existing vegetation, maintaining predevelopment runoff volume and infiltration rates, and providing water quality improvements. From the creation of bio retention areas and grass swales, to the utilization of rainwater harvesting and green roofs, adopting LID techniques will help developers create vibrant and attractive communities that are economically vibrant, while naturally reducing the environmental degradation and carbon dioxide emissions associated with traditional development.

To view 10 quick facts on Low Impact Development, click here.

To check out the EPA's page on LID, click here.

For more information on LID, including a tool to help you calculate how much stormwater will be infiltrated and money saved by using green infrastructure, click here.

To view a cost analysis of Low Impact Development conducted by the Conservation Research Institute, click here.

To view a report that shows over a dozen case-studies of communities saving money, water and energy by adopting LID strategies, click here. For a factsheet summarizing the findings of this report, click here.

For a hydrologic analysis of LID techniques conducted by the EPA, click here (PDF).

To get a sense of the wide variety of efforts being made on behalf of the EPA and other organizations to promote LID and green infrastructure, click here (PDF 1MB).

For information from the Water Environment Research Foundation on how you can use rainwater to grow livable communities, click here.