EPA’s Climate Resilience
Evaluation and
Awareness Tool (CREAT):
A Case Study
South
Monmouth
Regional
Sewerage
Authority
(SMRSA)
Serves 9 Townships
9.1 MGD Wastewater Treatment Plant 11 pump stations
11. 8 miles of Force main
South Monmouth Regional Sewerage Authority Monmouth County, New Jersey
SMRSA’s Cost of Rehabilitation After:
2009 Nor'easter: $1.8 M 2011 Hurricane : $2.5 M
2012 Super Storm Sandy: $11.5 M
Are
you
ready
for
climate
change?
Belmar, NJ after Super Storm Sandy
CREAT:
Climate
Resilience
Evaluation
and
Awareness
Tool
Uses of CREAT:
Developed specifically for water and wastewater utilities. Identifies potential climate change threats a utility’s assets.
Performs baseline assessment of the utility’s current resilience to
these threats.
Designs strategies to build additional resiliency to projected
climate changes.
Helps utilities identify effective risk reduction strategies and
Projected
Climate
Change
Challenges
NORTHEAST
Warmer days
(Temperatures above 90⁰ F)
Severe flooding due to
Sea level rise
Heavy rain events
Coastal Storm Surges MIDWEST
More extreme heat
Extreme precipitation
Flooding
Droughts
Lower levels in rivers and
Great Lakes
Source : CREAT/EPA
Step
1:
Asset
Selection
Two (2) Assets were selected for analysis in CREAT:
Belmar Pump Station – Located in flood zone; Received structural damage from
Sandy
16” DIP Force Main‐ 6 ft above sea level; Erosion concerns from future storm surges
Belmar Pump Station (EL 15 ft)
Step 2: Climate-related
Threat Identification
CREAT identified three major threats to Belmar Pump Station and force main system:
Beach erosion impact on station’s force
main
Coastal storm surges
Intense & frequent storm events
Asset
‐
Threat
Pairs
• The assets and threats are linked into pairs.
Risk
Assessment
Evaluation
•Each asset‐threat pair was analyzed for
2 future climate scenarios (using
CREAT provided data): Hot and Dry
Warm and Wet
•Each asset‐threat pair was analyzed for
2 time periods:
Mid‐ century (2021‐2050),
represented by the year 2035 Late century (2046‐2075),
represented by the year 2060 Multiple scenarios ( )within the
distribution of climate model projections
( ) for a given location.
Incr easing Pr ecipit at ion
Increasing Temperature
Step
3:
Baseline:
Existing
Adaptive
Measures
Current
protective
measures
taken
at
Belmar
Pump
Station:
• Follow Emergency Response Plan for Flooding Updated every 2 years
• Construct temporary flood barriers Use of sand bags
Installation of plywood on doors and window • Initiate Wastewater Bypass Pumping System
Direct wastewater flow to force main with the use of a portable pump
Existing
Protective
Measures
for
Belmar
PS
Force
Main:
Currently, there are no measures in place to protect the force main against erosion.
Step
3:
Baseline:
Baseline
Analysis
• Analyze each previously identified threat‐asset pairs for all time periods and climate scenarios
Time Periods: Mid‐century, Late century Climate scenarios: Hot & Dry, Wet & Warm
Step
4:
Resilience
Adaptive
Measures
‐
Belmar
Pump
Station
Building
Future
actions
SMRSA
is
considering
to
protect
the
pump
station
against
climate
related
threats:
4 ft Flood Doors at the existing Belmar Pump Station
(estimated cost $12,500)
Relocate Belmar Pump Station outside of flood zone.
(estimated cost $ 4.4 M)
A mobile enclosure that protects critical pump station components. (estimated cost $ 1.9 M)
Sea Girt Pump Station has a mobile enclosure that houses critical electrical and
emergency power generation equipment that can be relocated to areas that are not
flood prone before an impending storm.
Resilience
Adaptive
Measures:
Belmar
Force
Main
Future
actions
SMRSA
is
considering
to
protect
the
force
main
against
climate
related
threats:
Sheet piles in the location of the existing force main to
protect from erosion (estimated cost $3 Mil)
Install new force main in a location further inland and
Risk
Reduction
Calculation
CREAT calculates risk reduction based on the difference between
consequence levels between baseline conditions and resilience
analyses.
Output:
Risk Reduction Units (RRUs)
Risk Reduction per adaptive measure
Risk Reduction per dollar
The adaptive measures can be selected to create a planning
Step
5:
Adaptation
Planning:
Package
#1
Most
costly
Adaptive Measures Capital Cost Annualized Capital Cost** Risk Reduction Units 2035 Risk Reduction Units 2060 Total RRUs Annual-ized $/RRU Relocate Belmar Pump Station
$4,400,000 $295,749 46.8 57.8 104.5 $ 2,830
Relocate & install new force main
$6,600,000 $433,324 0 44.0 44.0 $10,082
Total Risk Reduction Units for Package 1: 148.5 RRUs
Adaptation
Planning:
Package
#2:
Medium
Cost
Adaptive Measures Capital Cost Annualized Capital Cost** Risk Reduction Units 2035 Risk Reduction Units 2060 Total RRUs Annualized $/RRU Mobile
enclosure $1,900,000 $127,710 46.8 57.8 104.5 $1,222.10
Relocate & install new force main
$6,600,000 $433,324 0 44.0 44.0 $10,082.36
Total Risk Reduction Units for Package 2: 148.5 RRUs
Adaptation
Planning:
Package
#3:
Least
Costly
Adaptive Measures Capital Cost Annualized Capital Cost** Risk Reduction Units 2035 Risk Reduction Units 2060 Total RRUs Annual-ized $/RRU Flood doors for existing Belmar pump station
$12,500 $840 26.5 14.5 41.0 $20.49
Sheet piling for existing force main
$3,000,000 $201,647 0 11.0 11 $18,332
Total Risk Reduction Units for Package 3: 52 RRUs
Risk
Reduction
Units
by
Adaptation
Package
39
Package 1 Package 2 Package 3 $11 M $8.5 M $3.0 M
Outcomes
for
SMSRA
A CREAT generated report served as tool to communicate results to
stakeholders and the community.
Software assisted SMRSA in a regional planning effort by assisting
the Authority in prioritizing their options.
The pump station mobile enclosure strategy was the first ever
recipient of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)’s “Least Cost Alternative Project” award.
