Design and Performance of Multipurpose Constructed Wetland and Flow Equalization Basin
Publication: Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 134, Issue 2
Abstract
Stormwater runoff from a portion of a Midwestern rail yard contacts industrial facilities including fuel storage tanks and fueling and servicing operation areas. Stormwater draining from a smaller sub-basin containing the industrial facilities previously flowed into a retention pond within the rail yard. The retention pond had a surface area of and a maximum storage capacity of . Given the large drainage area of the pond the retention time within the pond was shorter than optimal, limiting its potential effectiveness for improving water quality. To address these issues the pond was redesigned to have a storage capacity and configured into a constructed wetland to control a storm event and increase its ability to treat stormwater runoff. A network of riparian plants (5,700) was placed within the stormwater wetland to treat runoff prior to discharge off-site. Evaluating the performance of both the former and current retention basins revealed significant improvements in the retention and treatment ability when comparing the two structures. Mean total suspended solid concentrations and oil and grease concentrations were reduced approximately 45% when comparing pre- and postconstruction flow analysis. This innovative multiuse approach has demonstrated effectiveness in controlling storm flows and treating runoff from the rail yard.
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Acknowledgments
William R. McCloe, Jr. was the project manager for the railroad company during the design and construction phases of this project. His efforts and input associated with this work were invaluable and much appreciated.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Environmental Engineering
Volume 134 • Issue 2 • February 2008
Pages: 118 - 125
Copyright
© 2008 ASCE.
History
Received: Aug 8, 2006
Accepted: Jul 13, 2007
Published online: Feb 1, 2008
Published in print: Feb 2008
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