If you have innovative, out-of-the-box water management solutions, consider participating in the RISE Coastal Community Resilience Challenge. This challenge seeks innovative products and approaches around five resilience topic areas, including water management. The approaches must be demonstrated in the Hampton Roads region of Southeastern Virginia. The challenge’s water management topic area calls for cost-effective management of groundwater, stormwater, and/or tidal water. These fixes can be affordable, short-term mitigations or low-maintenance, long-term options in urban environments with high water tables.

Urban intersections in Norfolk

As part of the challenge, Norfolk Va., is looking for innovative water management interventions for urban intersections that would maximize stormwater storage and ecological benefits while reducing installation operation and maintenance costs. The water management intersections will be implemented as part of Norfolk’s Ohio Creek Project, funded by a $112 million U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant from the National Disaster Resilience Competition.

Norfolk seeks to showcase innovative solutions that would meet or preferably exceed the existing design criteria for stormwater management at the intersections. Selected solutions will be implemented and showcased at up to three intersections in the Ohio Creek project area.

Challenge details

The challenge is open to any individual or companies of any size. However, selected teams led by small businesses will have the opportunity to pitch their solutions to RISE’s Resilience Innovation Fund, which will provide more than $1 million in grants and loans to support small businesses with innovative ideas that need proof-of-concept or other business acceleration.

Proposals are due by Sept. 30, 2018. Detailed existing design criteria with baseline performance specifications associated with one of the intersections are posted on the RISE website. For more information, visit http://riseresilience.org/rise-resilience-challenge.
 

About RISE

RISE is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a mission to catalyze innovation and growth around creative solutions in the areas of sea-level rise, recurrent flooding, and economic resilience. By engaging and connecting thought leaders, conducting challenges, and investing in the most promising solutions, RISE seeks to position the Hampton Roads region of Southeastern Virginia as a laboratory for resilience and a leader in the effort to build more resilient communities.