Aging and vulnerable wastewater infrastructure. Drought resiliency for water supply. Erosion of barrier beaches and dunes. Flooded roads. Increased pollution to the river from heavier rain storms.
When 45 Ipswich residents, municipal staff members and regional partners spent the day together in the Ipswich Town Hall last week, these weren’t the only things they were talking about. They were also talking about an enlarged culvert being designed for Argilla Road that will accommodate heavier stream flows. Permeable pavers that will help rain soak into the ground instead of flooding a downtown parking lot. Raising a road to mitigate flooding and provide safer access to Great Neck and Little Neck. Assessments underway to floodproof the Town Wharf sewage pump station. Efforts to improve emergency and weather-related communications. Education about heating and cooling shelters. Energy resiliency through the Green Communities program. And much more.
With the Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness (MVP) planning workshop completed, the Town of Ipswich is poised to get even more support from the state’s MVP grant program; this time to take action on the priorities set during the planning workshop.
Led by Ipswich River Watershed Association Planner Kristen Grubbs, the MVP Workshop brought together stakeholders from multiple town departments, business groups and community organizations, with regional facilitators and planners to complete the Ipswich effort. The day-long meeting elicited local input on the areas of the town most vulnerable to climate impacts in the morning, while the afternoon focus was on strategizing and prioritizing solutions and actions to address these vulnerabilities. The plan that results from this workshop will provide a road map of actions and projects that Ipswich can implement, and will give the town eligibility for further state funding.
Later this spring, the Town will hold a Listening Session to get more public input on the priorities. Stay tuned, and contact Kristen Grubbs at [email protected] to be notified directly about this public meeting.
Interested to see the reports from Massachusetts communities who have already developed MVP Action Plans? Click here: https://www.mass.gov/service-details/2017-2018-mvp-planning-reports. If you don’t see your town listed, don’t worry! The State’s Office of Environmental Affairs has just released a new round of funding for the MVP Planning Grants, which are available on a rolling basis, to be completed by June, 2020. With your help, we can get even more communities enrolled in the MVP program this year.
There will be a public meeting to present an overview of Ipswich’s draft
Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Plan on Wednesday, March 27, 2019, 6:30-7:30 PM at Ipswich Town Hall, Room A.
See the flyer here
[blog_subscription_form title=”Subscribe For More River Updates”]