On Monday, U.S. District Judge Frederick Scullin signed a consent decree giving Onondaga County the final go-ahead to scrap plans for three new sewage plants and instead reduce sewer overflows with trees, rain gardens and permeable pavement.

Onondaga LakeIn 2008, County Executive Joanie Mahoney stopped the construction of a $128 million sewage plant in Armory Square, laying the groundwork for the consent decree. Mahoney, the Department of Environmental Conservation, and Atlantic States Legal Foundation then sought permission from Scullin to hammer out a deal that would emphasize green measures.

Through a combination of storage tanks, new sewers and green infrastructure, the county is expected to prevent at least 95 percent of storm runoff from reaching waterways by 2018, reducing runoff from current levels by 400 million gallons annually. According to the Post Standard, DEC officials have said these measures could be exemplary to other communities in how to beneficially use "green infrastructure."