Integration of Low-Impact Development into the International Stormwater BMP Database
Publication: Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 137, Issue 3
Abstract
Low impact development (LID) strategies are being encouraged in many communities as an approach to reduce potential adverse impacts of development on receiving streams. Many questions exist regarding how well various LID strategies perform in different settings, just as similar questions have been raised regarding performance of traditional stormwater best management practices (BMPs). Whereas historical focus on BMP performance has been water quality concentrations or loads, characterization of volume reduction benefits for both conventional and LID practices is increasingly an objective of researchers and stormwater managers. More than a decade ago, Urban Water Resources Research Council (UWRRC) members worked to develop a set of standardized monitoring and reporting protocols for traditional BMPs and to establish a master database for the purpose of evaluating BMP performance and the factors affecting performance. This effort culminated in the International Stormwater BMP Database (www.bmpdatabase.org), which contains data for more than 360 BMPs and continues to operate as a clearinghouse for stormwater BMP data and performance analyses. During 2008–2009, the International Stormwater BMP Database project expanded to better integrate LID into the database and develop a set of metrics that can be used to characterize BMP performance with regard to surface runoff volume reduction. This paper provides a condensed overview and progress report on the LID-focused effort, including the following topics: (1) monitoring guidance for LID at the overall site development level, (2) an overview of recent changes to the International Stormwater BMP Database to better accommodate LID studies, (3) a summary of LID studies currently included in the database, and (4) a proposed approach for evaluating performance of LID studies with regard to reducing surface runoff volumes.
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Acknowledgments
The International Stormwater BMP Database Project is a long-term project that was conceptualized in 1996 by Urban Water Resources Research Council members and funded by the USEPAU.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The project has grown and been sustained by support from many individuals and organizations, both financially and through submission of BMP studies. Supporting organizations include the Water Environment Research Foundation, the U.S. EPA, the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers, the Federal Highway Administration, and the American Public Works Association. During 2008–2009, the primary project focus has been on better integration of LID into the database. This effort has included monitoring, standardized reporting protocols, and analysis approaches that better assess hydrologic performance of BMPs and overall LID sites. In December 2008, an expert panel was convened to provide input and guidance on this effort. Geosyntec Consultants and Wright Water Engineers (WWE) would like to acknowledge the following experts who were instrumental in developing many of the concepts included in this paper: Richard Horner, P.E., Ph.D., University of Washington; Bill Hunt, P.E., Ph.D., North Carolina State University; Bob Pitt, P.E., Ph.D., University of Alabama; Robert Roseen, P.E. Ph.D., University of New Hampshire; Robert Traver, P.E., Ph.D., Villanova University; and Ben Urbonas, P.E., Urban Watersheds, LLC.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Irrigation and Drainage Engineering
Volume 137 • Issue 3 • March 2011
Pages: 190 - 198
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 16, 2009
Accepted: Feb 23, 2010
Published online: Feb 25, 2010
Published in print: Mar 1, 2011
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