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<br />2636 <br />21. For how many years will this <br />emissions reduction take place <br />as a result of your project? <br />Please consider the expected <br />lifetime of the <br />technology/program/impact <br />etc. <br />Most often bmp installations last 10 to 20 years depending on the <br />practice and the maintenance. Some bmp installations enabled by <br />this funding will remain literally into perpetuity, such as riparian <br />buffers. Other practices have annual maintenance services that are <br />required. This maintenance service area is going to be an area for <br />new entrepreneurial opportunities in the Triangle. This is why USS <br />is working to train teachers and students for these new Green jobs <br />careers. <br />22. Please describe the location of <br />the emissions reduction. Where <br />would fossil fuels have been <br />burned if not for your project? <br />For projects creating electricity <br />usage reductions, it can be <br />difficult to determine the <br />location of the power produced. <br />Please feel free to state “Grid- <br />tied electricity reduction” <br />Plants absorb CO2 from the water and soil as well as the <br />atmosphere. Most vegetative CO2 capture is attributed to gasoline <br />and oil emissions from automobiles and fossil fuel consumption for <br />energy production. In addition, animals and plants produce CO2 <br />that is released into the atmosphere and absorbed by plants for <br />energy. All three of these sources have been increasing <br />exponentially as the human population and its need for energy <br />consumption grow. USS bmp installations target low-income <br />residential properties that have been historically underserved when <br />it comes to stormwater management, causing flooding and erosion <br />of their properties. But these areas also suffer from soil and <br />ground-water contamination due to industrial use and/or disposal <br />near or previously on their properties (https://abc11.com/water- <br />contamination-forever-chemicals-pfas-clean/13165340/). While <br />identifying the low-income sites on which to install stormwater <br />bmp’s, we are collaborating with Orange County Stormwater <br />Management to prioritize sites with the highest need in relation to <br />all of the above factors, including 7 dry-cleaning-contaminated sites <br />in Orange County (https://indyweek.com/news/archives-news/state- <br />investigating-dry-cleaning-chemical-contamination-near-weaver- <br />street-business/). <br />23. Please describe any other <br />aspect of your project that is <br />relevant to the amount of <br />emissions that it will reduce or <br />avoid. <br />In addition to the direct CO2 emissions reduction and carbon <br />sequestration enabled by our project, our installation of stormwater <br />bmp’s - including site-dependent rain gardens, riparian buffers, and <br />rainwater-storing cisterns - will substantially reduce sedimentation <br />and pollution (nitrogen and phosphorous) of the surrounding <br />waterways by bypassing impermeable surfaces (roofs and roads) <br />and directing stormwater runoff to vegetation whose roots stabilize <br />the soil and slow the flow of stormwater runoff <br />(https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological- <br />sciences/riparian-buffers). Healthy waterways are integral to <br />reducing the effects of climate change and greenhouse gas <br />emissions moving forward: <br />https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-environ-110615- <br />085856. <br /> <br />DocuSign Envelope ID: 2C2F66C4-424F-4660-AF8A-A623B6D7194E