Runoff Quality Analysis of Urban Catchments with Analytical Probabilistic Models
Publication: Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 132, Issue 1
Abstract
The assessment of stormwater runoff pollution from urban catchments is addressed within a probabilistic framework. The methodology utilizes probability density functions of rainfall event characteristics, a runoff coefficient based rainfall-runoff transformation, and commonly used pollutant buildup and washoff processes representations. Employing derived probability distribution theory, analytical probabilistic runoff quality models are derived using exponential buildup and washoff functions. The derived analytical models yield expressions for expected event pollutant washoff load, annual average washoff load, the probability distribution of event washoff load, and the long-term average pollutant event mean concentration (EMC). These derived models are verified with available field data from an urban catchment located in the Greater Toronto Area. The verification results suggest that these analytical probabilistic models can be used for the assessment of runoff pollutant loads from urban catchments during planning-level analyses. These are computationally efficient closed-form mathematical expressions that can be easily incorporated into the spreadsheets and are thus a useful tool as an alternative or complement to more resource-intensive simulation models.
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Acknowledgments
The writers gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided for this study by the Canadian Commonwealth Scholarship Program, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the University of Toronto.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Water Resources Planning and Management
Volume 132 • Issue 1 • January 2006
Pages: 4 - 14
Copyright
© 2006 ASCE.
History
Received: Jan 17, 2003
Accepted: May 3, 2005
Published online: Jan 1, 2006
Published in print: Jan 2006
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