Planning Process

The Ridge to River team has spent the last two years developing an integrated plan for action. Each step of the process led to critical new discoveries, opportunities, and strategic decisions. Learn how we moved from an idea to action.

THE CHALLENGE

The climate is changing, storms are becoming more frequent and damaging, and we must minimize our community's risk.

How can we build resilience and clean water in the Mad River Valley?

PHASE 1

Coming Together

Mad River Valley towns have a long history of working & talking together across town lines.

​Since Irene, we've known that resilience is a challenge and clean water is a priority. 

​But three critical events helped us chart a new, strategic course to tackling these challenges together.








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EPA Smart Growth Implementation Assistance Project

In the wake of Tropical Storm Irene, this EPA technical assistance program reviewed policies and opportunities to improve flood resilience in the Mad River Valley. A big takeaway: we need to work together to better manage stormwater runoff across the whole ​watershed.

2015 Leahy Center Environmental Summit

In March 2015, Friends of the Mad River and Mad River Valley Planning District invited dozens of Mad River community members to come together at the 2015 Leahy Center Environmental Summit and brainstorm ways to strengthen the community's resilience to future floods. A twenty-person team worked together for two days and identified improved stormwater runoff management as one of the biggest opportunities in the MRV for resilience. They envisioned working with neighbors across town lines to develop innovative solutions for our rural Vermont watershed.
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MRV Team with Senator and Marcelle Leahy. Photo by Leahy Staff

High Meadows Fund Watershed Resilience Grant

After the Summit, the team prepared an application to the High Meadows Fund's Watershed Resilience Grant program. We proposed to establish a taskforce that would lay the foundation for a long-term effort to proactively manage stormwater throughout the MRV. All five watershed town selectboards approved the grant proposal and committed their time to the important work. 
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The taskforce aimed to:
  • educate and engage the community in the planning process; consider research results and public input 
  • recommend a structure and scope for future stormwater management programs 
  • and exchange information with municipal boards via official town representatives.

​The High Meadows Fund awarded us a $60,000 grant in July 2015.
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In 2015, the High Meadows Fund awarded funding to watershed collaborations statewide.

THE REALIZATION


The best way we can build resilience in the Mad River Valley is to manage stormwater runoff from rain and snow melt.

And because stormwater runs across municipal lines, we must work collaboratively across town, sector, and organizational boundaries.

Forming a Team

With funding from the High Meadows Foundation, we brought together collaborators representing a range of interests and stakeholders.

Taskforce

We formed a Taskforce, made up of one representative from each watershed town’s Planning Commission and one from each town’s Selectboard, as well as representatives from Sugarbush Resort and other interested citizens.
The taskforce formed two active technical working groups:
  • the municipal planning technical team 
  • the communications and engagement technical team 

Leadership

  • Friends of the Mad River​​​
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Organizational Partners

  • Mad River Valley Planning District​​
  • Central Vermont Regional Planning Commission​

Launching Ridge to River

In our first Taskforce meetings and conversations with advisors, we spent time discussing who we are, what we wanted to accomplish, and where we want to start.

Identity

We decided on the name "Ridge to River" to emphasize the fact that our watershed includes the whole Valley - from headwaters to main stem, and ridgelines to floodplains.

Charting a Path

In our first meetings and strategy sessions, we realized quickly that managing stormwater in the Mad River Valley means pursuing three distinct paths. As we moved to the next phase of our work, we started taking action where opportunities were clear, while simultaneously learning, planning, and engaging with the community.

EMERGING OPPORTUNITIES

We can start taking action now where there are clear opportunities.

LEARNING

We need to understand problems and find solutions.

ENGAGEMENT

We need to listen, connect, and educate our community.

PHASE 2 - Digging In

Emerging Opportunities

We quickly created a process for identifying high priority sites in the Valley for stormwater work, and for ensuring that stormwater was part of the conversation as existing Valley planning and policy processes moved forward.

Stormwater Master Planning (SWMP)

We applied for funding and created stormwater master plans for some of the sites in the Valley with the largest amounts of impervious surface: school campuses, resorts, and village centers.

On-the-Ground Installations

After master planning or quick action opportunities emerged, we identified priority installations. At several sites, we used Best Management Practices (BMPs) or installed Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) solutions that are already slowing, spreading, and sinking runoff.

Learning

In order to manage the stormwater at distributed sites across the Valley, we needed to learn more about three core arenas.

Landscape & Environment

We learned about sources of stormwater runoff in the Valley, priority strategies and sites, and the assets protecting us.

KEY FINDINGS

Steep, rural roads and driveways present a major stormwater challenge. And forests strengthen resilience, but we're losing forest cover.

Planning &
Policy 

We assessed the strength of our local plans and policies and looked at models for addressing stormwater and resilience.

KEY FINDINGS

Most MRV development and land disturbance falls under thresholds for stormwater regulation. The result? Most runoff is not managed. 

Community & Stakeholders

We conducted a baseline survey, mapped out stakeholders and their interests, and looked at best practices in engagement.

KEY FINDINGS

People care about the watershed and their impacts and want to take action. But they need help to make it happen - time, skills, info and resources. 

Engagement & Education

Stormwater is not a topic on the tip of everyone's tongue, so we planned events and looked for early opportunities to start engaging with the community and educating people on this critical issue. These will continue as we move toward action.

Community Events

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We prioritized going out to the community to connect with leaders and residents at a variety of events, from 5-town leadership meetings to board and commission meetings to community celebrations. 

Education & Resources

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We produced a series of booklets and early presentations to highlight resilience strategies and successful models in the Mad River Valley.

PHASE 3 - Taking Action

Program Development

With data and information in hand, we started developing ideas for programs that would address our environmental challenges, fit with our planning and policy context, and serve our community.
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Taskforce members work in small groups to develop rapid project prototypes.

Concept Development

Two subcommittees of the Ridge to River Taskforce worked on fleshing out program ideas. The Planning & Technical Team developed programs designed to help municipalities improve planning and ordinances. The Community Engagement & Education Team worked with Community Workshop to design programs that would engage stakeholders and result in behavior changes. The full Taskforce then worked to evaluate the potential impact and feasibility of programs, leading to prioritization.

Model Program Review

Both teams reviewed model programs from around Vermont and beyond, to find model programs or policies and best practices that could inform how our programs take shape. Models included:
  • Municipal stormwater ordinances
  • Thetford HEAT (home energy retrofits)
  • Green infrastructure certifications
  • Cold Hollow to Canada & Champlain Valley Farmers' Coalition (peer outreach)

Rapid Prototyping
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Community Workshop facilitated a Taskforce meeting designed to develop rapid project prototypes, moving quickly from idea stage to program concepts that could be tested and refined. 

Several of those programs are now moving toward pilot stages or further development with partners, including the Storm Smart Challenge and Road Roundtables.

Action Framework

Our work to date all feeds into a final strategic product: a framework of specific programs that directly address stormwater runoff across the Valley, wherever it is a problem. They are designed to appeal to our unique stakeholders, overcome barriers to action and provide incentives. Those programs are united under the banner "Storm Smart" - a comprehensive effort to help our Valley's people and places get smarter, safer and more resilient, before the next storm.

In addition to individual programs, we've created integrated campaigns that package the most useful resources and programs for our priority action areas.

Storm Smart 
Building a cleaner, safer, & more resilient Mad River Valley


Valley & Watershed

Municipalities

Roads & Developed Areas

​Homes & Driveways

Trails & Recreation Sites

​Farms & Forests

PHASE 3 - Looking Forward

Next Steps

As we move forward with our action framework, we have additional needs in three core areas.

Additional Research & Data Needs

Our research has led to conclusions - including the need for more data and follow up investigations. One step in our Action Framework lays out a plan for conducting additional research and data collection.

Fundraising & Partnerships

Nearly all of the programs and action steps in our Action Framework require additional funding and/or partnerships. We're pursuing funding for top priority projects now, and exploring partnerships with new organizations.

Evaluation, Learning & Adjustment

Our two year process evolved and changed as we learned. We'll continue that experimental approach as we move forward, measuring success and adapting our actions and strategy to our learning and changing opportunities.