To assist green infrastructure project managers with understanding long-term maintenance issues, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant conducted a needs assessment. This assessment grew out of a recognition that declining infrastructure performance and sufficiency is a fundamental challenge to stormwater management over time.

Ecosystem Services Valuation in the Indiana Coastal Zone introduces this concept to coastal zone managers, policymakers, and valuation practitioners. Ecosystem services valuation allows decision makers to better address resource management challenges and communicate how actions can negatively or positively affect the public.

Concern over water service affordability has grown in recent years as water bills escalate at a faster pace than the overall cost-of-living.While the cost of water has been rising over the past decade, the ability of consumers to pay for water service has declined. This review examines the definition and measurement of water affordability through a chronological search and presentation of the regulatory and research literature. Results will be used to determine a method for measuring water affordability for the northeastern Illinois region.

This document provides a review of policies and programs addressing water bill affordability issues and equitable access to water. Five broad strategies are discussed, including: cost reduction, water efficiency, rate design, customer assistance programs, and hard to reach programs. For each solution, a definition, implementation considerations, examples, and potential recommendations are provided. More extensive case studies from a handful of water systems and a brief summary of the literature reviewed is also included. Results will be used to inform a community water affordability technical assistance program.