Yasmine Pessar
Environmental Planner
City of Hoboken
Biography
Ms. Yasmine Pessar is an environmental planner and project manager at the City of Hoboken, NJ. She has a BA, in urban planning and geography from SUNY Albany, and is currently pursuing her MA, in urban and regional planning at Hunter College. Prior to joining the City of Hoboken, Yasmine worked for civil engineers at Insight Civil Engineering, PLLC; environmental scientists, planners and engineers at Dewberry Engineers; and environmental engineers at the MTA New York City Transit - CPM Environmental Engineering Division. She has a wealth of knowledge and passion for resiliency and sustainability projects.
Rutgers Climate Bridge Panel 2: Impact on Place
Abstract
The City of Hoboken is a coastal city, making it vulnerable to two interconnected types of flooding: coastal flooding from storm surge and high tide, as well as localized stormwater flooding from rainfall events. The City was originally surrounded by the Hudson River on the east and marshy tidal lands near the Palisades on the west. Roughly 75 percent of Hoboken is in a flood zone. Coastal flooding, such as what occurred during Hurricane Sandy, happens with much less frequency, but can devastate widespread areas of the City and cause significant economic damage and safety concerns. Stormwater flooding, such as what occurred during Hurricane Irene, often occurs during intense rain events, and happens with much greater frequency with less severe impacts, but significant damage to health and property. Finally, flooding can be exacerbated if rainfall occurs during high tide and during the daytime hours, when sanitary flows are highest.
This presentation given by Yasmine Pessar, Environmental Planner from the City of Hoboken, will review the practical and tangible actions that the City is undertaking to mitigate climate change. Ms. Pessar will discuss Hoboken’s Climate Leadership, Plans and Projects that address climate change (such as the Climate Action Plan and Rebuild by Design Project), and future mitigation strategies that the City plans to explore and eventually implement.