Greenseams: Restoring a Natural Flood Barrier

The sponge-like soils of farmland, wetlands and wooded basins around Milwaukee are the city’s not-so-secret weapon against severe floods. With the Fund’s help, the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District has acquired more than 2,000 of these key acres as part of its ambitious Greenseams program to prevent flooding and treat polluted waters.

“We’re trying to look at how nature dealt with flooding before mankind came along,” said MMSD Executive Director Kevin Shafer, who helped establish the Greenseams program. Left undeveloped, the absorbent soils along rivers and creeks can hold and filter millions of gallons of water that would otherwise wash into flood-prone neighborhoods.

Restoring this key natural service to the metro area can cost less than moving homes and businesses out of the flood plain. Milwaukee residents—and Wisconsin wildlife—are also enjoying the open prairies and lush woodlands that have returned to urban neighborhoods as a result of the innovative project.

Learn more about our Greenseams program

Photo: Nick Bristol