Is This Project Worth it?

Josh Burch
District Department of Energy & Environment
Washington, DC

Residents adjacent to a small wetland overgrown with invasive plants in a residential neighborhood in Washinton, DC, implored the District government to do something about the unseemly site. For years, the District did not have a funding source to tackle the project, had reservations about its logistical complications, and did not have the capacity to take it on. After years of residential (and some political) pressure and funding becoming available, the DOEE took this project on. This presentation will explore the project’s history, the environmental condition of the wetland pre-restoration, the neighborhood and ownership dynamics, the funding for the project, and the anticipated environmental outcomes.

Following the examination of the facts of the project, the presentation will explore the social, economic, and environmental factors that can help decide whether this project is ‘worth it’ or not. The second half of the presentation will be an interactive discussion with audience members to discuss how what makes a project ‘worth it’ to one project owner might not be the case for another project owner. In an environmental world focused on pollutant load reductions, this presentation will discuss how success is currently measured and should measure project success.

About Josh Burch
Josh Burch manages stream restoration projects for the District Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE). Josh has held this position since 2009, and has managed the construction of over 15,000ft of urban stream and has over 40,000ft of projects currently under designs. When not at DOEE Josh is usually taking his children to soccer or basketball games, biking, fishing, gardening, or rambling on to anyone who will listen about why D.C. should be a state.