Mayor Eric Adams celebrates Earth Day by announcing the completion of a $42.3 million flood prevention infrastructure project in East Flatbush and Canarsie, Brooklyn, featuring 1,200 new flood-fighting assets that will capture over 122 million gallons of stormwater annually and keep residents safe.

Mayor Adams Celebrates Earth Day by Announcing Completion of $42 Million Flood Prevention Infrastructure Project to Reduce Roadway Flooding, Bolster Safety in East Flatbush and Canarsie

New Rain Gardens, Infiltration Basins Will Capture More Than 122 Million Gallons —
Enough to Fill 184 Olympic Swimming Pools — of Stormwater Annually,
Keeping East Flatbush and Canarsie Residents Safe 
223 New Trees Planted to Clean Air, Reduce Effects of Hotter
Summers on Heat-Vulnerable Neighborhoods in New York City

NEW YORK – In celebration of Earth Week, New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced the completion of a $42.3 million safety project in East Flatbush and Canarsie, Brooklyn, that will reduce street flooding and keep New Yorkers safe during rainstorms. Nearly 1,200 new flood-fighting assets will keep excess rainwater off the streets and out of the sewers. This includes 906 infiltration basins and 291 rain gardens, which will capture approximately 122.5 million gallons of stormwater annually — enough to fill 184 Olympic-sized swimming pools.. 

“Protecting New Yorkers from the clear and present danger to life and property that flooding poses is critical to keeping New Yorkers safe on Earth Day and every day,” said Mayor Adams. “These investments in Canarsie and East Flatbush will capture enough water annually to fill 184 Olympic swimming pools — keeping residents safe and reducing flooding. Our administration continues to focus on creating a safer, more affordable city, and with climate change continuing to produce more intense and more frequent extreme weather, investments like these are a key part of our public safety and affordability strategies.”

“Stronger and more frequent storms are felt more acutely with every passing year. This Earth Day, one thing is clear: We need to bring every resource we have to bear to protect communities from the water that laps at our shores and inundates us from above,” said Deputy Mayor for Operations Jeff Roth. “Delivering rain gardens and infiltration basins may seem minor, but in aggregate, they offset tens of millions of gallons of rainwater, saving property and, most importantly, lives.”

Locations of new flood mitigation public safety infrastructure in East Flatbush (left) and Canarsie (right).

Credit: New York City Department of Environmental Protection

Rain gardens resemble typical curbside tree beds, but are engineered to capture and store up to 2,500 gallons of rainwater that then percolate into the ground, preventing flooding. Infiltration basins are similarly designed to store and absorb rainwater, but at sidewalk level they have a walkable surface that blends into the surrounding conditions.

As part of the project, the city planted 223 trees across East Flatbush and Canarsie, which have historically been two of New York’s most heat-vulnerable neighborhoods. The trees provide shade, improve air quality, and relieve the urban heat island effect. Cared for by NYC Parks, the new trees build on the record number of trees planted by NYC Parks in FY24.

“Every storm is a reminder that climate change is here and hitting New York City hard,” said New York City Chief Climate Officer and New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala. “This new green infrastructure in East Flatbush and Canarsie will soak up stormwater to ease flooding and reduce pollution. Green infrastructure like this can be delivered to New Yorkers quickly and with little construction disruption.”

“These trees will help to cool some of the city’s hottest neighborhoods, including Canarsie, one of our Climate Strong Communities,” said Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice Executive Director Elijah Hutchinson. “As that program has shown us, so many of our residents are at risk of multiple climate threats. Today’s announcement is a perfect example of how we’re going to have to think holistically to keep our communities safe from climate hazards as the city gets hotter and wetter.”

“Bringing green infrastructure to East Flatbush and Canarsie, Brooklyn as part of these two projects is just one way we are celebrating Earth Week at DDC,” said New York City Department of Design and Construction (DDC) Commissioner Thomas Foley. “We are completing other projects like these all over the city, and have a team working hard every day to find engineering and architectural solutions to make our infrastructure and public buildings stock greener while also combating the effects of climate change. We thank our partners at City Hall, DEP, and the New York City Department of Transportation for working with us on these important upgrades that help curb flooding and beautify streets.”

“Investments in resilient infrastructure are vital to keeping our city and New Yorkers safe,” said New York City Economic Development Corporation President & CEO Andrew Kimball. “We are proud to work with our partners at DEP and DDC to build significant green infrastructure such as infiltration basins and rain gardens that will help protect Brooklyn from street flooding and water pollution, resulting in cleaner and greener neighborhoods.”

Today’s announcement builds on investments the Adams administration has made to protect New Yorkers from stormwater flooding. Since the start of this administration, $12.3 billion has been planned for stormwater infrastructure — ranging from traditional sewer upgrades to innovative green infrastructure solutions and more — through the city’s Ten Year Capital Plan.  Across the nation, similar investments in anti-flooding infrastructure have been shown to prevent seven times as much damage as the original investment.

Last fall, Mayor Adams celebrated milestones in five major public safety projects, including the completion of major sewer upgrades that tripled drainage capacity in College Point and doubled it in Maspeth, the installation of the 200th flood sensor in Corona, Queens, and breaking ground on the first Cloudburst project at the New York City Housing Authority’s South Jamaica Houses, which will keep nearly 3.5 million gallons of stormwater out of the sewer system each year.

April 22, 2025 New York City Hall, Manhattan

Sources: NYC.gov , Midtown Tribune ,
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