International Low Impact Development Conference 2016
Simulation of the Cumulative Hydrological Response to Green Infrastructure
Publication: International Low Impact Development Conference 2016: Mainstreaming Green Infrastructure
ABSTRACT
The performance variability of green infrastructure is connected to the changing dynamics in rainfall-runoff processes. Because of these dynamics, a green infrastructure facility experiences a range of rainfall-runoff events that are difficult to fully capture during a monitoring program. In this study, we evaluated the cumulative hydrologic performance of green infrastructure in a residential area of the city of Parma, Ohio, draining to a tributary of the Cuyahoga River. Green infrastructure involved the following spatially distributed devices: 16 street side bioretentions cells, 7 rain gardens, and 37 rain barrels. Data consisted of rainfall and outfall flow records for a wide range of storm events, including pre-treatment and treatment periods. The stormwater management model (SWMM) was calibrated and validated to predict the hydrologic response of green infrastructure. Optimized parameters were used to estimate flow attenuation over 11 years of precipitation data in order to capture the complex rainfall-runoff dynamics. For the long-term simulation of green infrastructure, we observed a 0.8% increase in evaporation, an 8.8% increase in infiltration, a 14.2% reduction in surface runoff, and 4.6% outflow from green infrastructure. The hydrologic performance of green infrastructure was evaluated by comparing the flow duration curve for pre-treatment and treatment outfall flow scenarios. The flow duration curve shifted downwards for the green infrastructure scenario, with a 21-26% decrease in the Q99 and Q98 percentiles. Parameter and predictive uncertainties were inspected by implementing a Bayesian statistical approach.
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Published In
International Low Impact Development Conference 2016: Mainstreaming Green Infrastructure
Pages: 43 - 51
Editors: Robert Roseen, Ph.D., Waterstone Engineering, Virginia Roach, CDM Smith, and James Houle, Ph.D., The University of New Hampshire
ISBN (Online): 978-0-7844-8054-0
Copyright
© 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Published online: Oct 11, 2017
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