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FRAMEWORK FOR PLACEMENT OF BMPS IN URBAN WATERSHEDS
Citation:
Lai*, D AND R Field*. FRAMEWORK FOR PLACEMENT OF BMPS IN URBAN WATERSHEDS. Presented at WSWRD Peer Review, Cincinnati, OH, September 26 - 29, 2004.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public.
Description:
A number of stormwater control strategies, commonly known as best management practices (BMPs), are used to mitigate runoff volumes and associated nonpoint source pollution due to wet-weather flows (WWFs). BMP types include ponds, bioretention facilities, infiltration trenches, grass swales, filter strips, dry wells, and cisterns. Another control option is "low impact development" (LID) - or hydrologic source control - which strives to retain a site's pre-development hydrologic regime, reducing WWF and the associated nonpoint source pollution and treatment needs.
To assist stormwater management professionals in planning for BMP/LID implementation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) initiated a research project in 2002 to develop a decision support system for selection and placement of BMP/LID at strategic locations in urban watersheds. The BMP/LID assessment tools, based on sound science and engineering, will help develop, evaluate, select, and place BMP options based on cost and effectiveness. The system is called the Integrated Stormwater Management Decision Support Framework (ISMDSF). The ISMDSF will provide a means for objective analysis of management alternatives among multiple interacting and competing factors. The desired outcome from the system application is a thorough, practical, and informative assessment considering the significant factors in urban watersheds. The ISMDSF will be applied to several diverse urban watersheds to evaluate and demonstrate its capability.
The initial phase of this research is expected to be completed in 2005 and will include a comprehensive design with all pieces in place but not all functionalities. The subsequent phase, with funds already committed, will include an enhanced geographical information system (GIS) capability for visualization of placement options, more powerful post-processors, expanded cost estimating functions, improved BMP simulation processes, and more importantly, a cost-optimization component. The development of the GIS-based tools and preparation of their documentation are expected to be completed in 2008.