Sustainability isn't just a buzzword in city departments. StormCon is unique from other conferences
in that we look carefully at a variety of stormwater issues facing our cities.
Each year, we measure the effectiveness of our conference tracts with the
current demands facing municipal stormwater and public works managers,
engineering consultants, regulatory personnel, watershed management
professionals, and others concerned with stormwater and surface-water quality.
Smart growth practices and sustainability are key areas of focus year in and
year out.
Examples of structural and nonstructural best management
practices (BMPs) and low-impact development (LID) techniques have proven to be
the most widely attended conference courses and provide a meaningful forum
to have conversations with city officials from all over the country.
It is no surprise that two of this year’s most comprehensive
conference tracks will again be BMP Case
Studies and Low-Impact Development. It is also no surprise that most
of our attendees will come from some of America’s greenest cities.
What's the greenest American city? According to the latest annual
report from SustainLane, it's Portland, OR.
Using criteria in 16 categories, including air
and water quality, traffic congestion, access to public transportation, land
use, green business activity, and environmental policies, SustainLane, an
Internet company that focuses on health and environmental issues, ranks Portland
as the greenest of the 50 largest US cities. The city has ranked first since the
company began compiling the lists in 2005.
Here are the top 10 cities, with their 2006 rankings in
parentheses:
1) Portland, OR (1)
2) San Francisco, CA (2)
3) Seattle, WA (3)
4) Chicago, IL (4)
5) New York, NY (6)
6) Boston, MA (7)
7) Minneapolis, MN (10)
8) Philadelphia, PA (8)
9) Oakland, CA (5)
10) Baltimore, MA (11)
And at the bottom of the list:
40) Nashville, MN (42)
41) Arlington, TX (41)
42) Long Beach, CA (30)
43) Colorado Springs, CO (26)
44) Indianapolis, IN (45)
45) Virginia Beach, VA (48)
46) Memphis, TN (tied for 43rd with Detroit, MI)
47) Las Vegas, NV (27)
48) Tulsa, OK (40)
49) Oklahoma City, OK (49)
50) Mesa, AZ (47)
The complete StormCon ’09 Conference Program will
provide detailed information on our course curriculum, speakers, agenda, special
events, and more. The program will be available in print and online in spring
2009.