Stormwater Central: MWRD releases an online portal to document and map stormwater management storage progress

A new hub for mapping data and insight into the work of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Stormwater Management Program is live and accessible to the public.

Available at geohub.mwrd.org/pages/stormwater-central, the new site provides a new window into the MWRD's stormwater management work in building resilience across Cook County. The interactive portal will serve as an integrated hub for mapping data, project information, and insights into how the MWRD is working to reduce flooding and manage stormwater across Cook County.

The hub includes the Stormwater Project and Data Explorer, which maps data incorporating information on past and ongoing MWRD stormwater management projects. Visitors to the page can learn more about projects occurring in their communities or across Cook County. They can assess stormwater volume capture, the goals that the MWRD has set for capturing more volume and track progress as more MWRD projects are implemented across watersheds.

"Our mission is to protect our communities and prevent flooding. This integrated hub of mapping data and content will allow us to see how the environmental landscape has changed over the last decade," said MWRD President Kari K. Steele. "As we continue current projects and plan for future ones, this new portal will showcase our stormwater management efforts of today and help us adapt for tomorrow."

Since 2004, the MWRD has served as the regional authority for stormwater management in Cook County. As the impacts of climate change intensify, the MWRD has overseen a countywide effort to manage stormwater runoff, reduce flooding, improve the health of area waterways, and protect the source of drinking water in Lake Michigan. Over that time, the MWRD has implemented new policies, strategies and partnerships to manage increasingly intense and unpredictable storms. In just over a decade, since receiving local authority in 2014, the MWRD has completed over 230 projects that protect more than 17,000 homes, businesses and other buildings from flooding.

Local governments and public agencies in Cook County can apply to the MWRD for help with funding stormwater projects. The portal documents this growing map of projects after years of meticulous data management. Additional data is available to users upon request.

"The portal promotes our transparency in sharing our work to protect communities from flooding and improve local water quality," said MWRD Commissioner Yumeka Brown. "Whether you are a resident, data analyst, engineer, planner, public servant, stormwater management advocate, cartographer, environmentalist or clean water enthusiast, there is something for everyone on our new Stormwater Central portal that sheds detailed information into our work to manage and contain stormwater."