What Happened?
Communities in the Northeast are taking advantage of funding opportunities to develop tools and technologies to prepare for, and deal with, severe storms in the future. The grants are awarded to programs offering solutions to many problems seen in the wake of major storms such as Hurricane Sandy.
New Jersey
NJ Transit reported 319 trains were damaged while in storage – costing an estimated $100 million in repairs - when Hurricane Sandy struck in 2012. To prevent future damages, NJ Transit and Stevens Institute of Technology are using an $843,750 federal grant to develop a system to warn of storm driven flooding that would give local agencies notice of impending severe conditions, NJ.com reported.
Local governments that receive the warnings could move locomotive and passenger train cars out of flood areas, as well as send messages to commuters alerting them to service suspensions or delays. The warning system would have monitoring stations throughout the state that would watch water levels and generate atmospheric forecasts. The information collected would then be shared with NJ Transit officials so equipment could be moved and commuters protected before storms strike, NJ.com reported.
The federal grant is provided through the Federal Transit Administration’s Office of Mobility Innovation under the Innovative Safety, Resilience, and All-Hazards Emergency Response and Recovery Research Demonstrations category. The grants are focused on three specific areas of improvements:
- Operational safety
- Infrastructure or equipment resiliency
- All-hazards emergency response and recovery methods
The goal of this grant program is to develop and showcase new technologies, methods, practices and techniques to improve public transportation systems.
Milford
In Milford, Connecticut, several federal grants have been awarded to protect the local community from severe weather in the future. In total, the city received $2.5 million for storm-related improvements, as well as a $3 million grant from the state to install a solar panel array and natural gas generators for an electric micro-grid to keep key facilities running if the power were to go out, CT Post reported.
The projects funded by various federal grants include:
- Purchase and installation of a large generator for a local high school
- Improving drainage at coastline sites
- Elevate roads and improve floodgates at a local bridge
The alternative power sources will not only keep the city running during a storm, but also generate power at a reduced cost to the city. The funding is part of Connecticut’s $30 million initiative to develop a statewide micro-grid program.
Massachusetts
The state of Massachusetts has awarded more than $18 million to 13 projects statewide that aim to enhance energy resiliency through investment in combined heat and power, battery storage and micro-grids. The goal is to ensure facilities used to provide public services to residents during a severe storm are able to stay operation when the power goes out. Projects include:
- Enabling solar photovoltaic panels to fuel shelters and public buildings
- Islanding of critical services to increase the efficiency of battery storage
- Moving toward a micro-grid for emergency facilities using renewable energy
The funding comes after the state allocated more than $7 million in grants for distributed generation and energy storage projects to increase resiliency and energy efficiency, Green Tech Media reported.
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