Green Infrastructure (Stormwater Management Mandates)

This might look like a typical parking lot, but it was updated with environmentally-friendly features in 2024. Why? When it rains, water flows across the pavement carrying toxic pollutants like automobile oils and fluids, tire dust, and animal feces toward Lodi Lake. It's called "stormwater."

To protect the water quality of the lake, Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) filters the stormwater to remove pollutants and trash before it hits the lake. Notches in the curbs known as "curb cuts" direct water into a rocky swale: a shallow trench lined with stones. The rocks slow the flow of water and spread it out, letting it soak into the soil where biota and plant roots filter out pollutants.

These features help the City of Lodi comply with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) stormwater regulations, which require state and local agencies to take action to reduce stormwater pollution to protect rivers, lakes, fish and wildlife habitats. This GSI system is part of a larger effort to safeguard the Mokelumne River and Lodi Lake for all species, including humans, to enjoy.