Impact of Alternative Storm Water Management Approaches on Highway Infrastructure
Principal Investigator:
John Nieber, Professor, Bioproducts and Biosystems Engr
Co-Investigator:
- Robert Sykes, Associate Professor, Landscape Architecture
Project Summary:
Pavements associated with roadways, highways, parking lots, and other suburban and urban infrastructures generate much higher volumes of storm water runoff than would occur when the land is under natural or even rural/agricultural conditions. Conventional approaches for storm water control include such features as storm sewers and constructed open channels in conjunction with storm water holding ponds, to get rid of the storm water as quickly as possible. These conventional approaches have been criticized because they tend to promote downstream flooding, soil erosion, reduced groundwater recharge, and water quality degradation. Alternative techniques have now been developed that enhance infiltration and treat runoff water so that groundwater recharge is enhanced, and surface water discharges are of higher quality. These techniques include bioretention (rain gardens), wet ponds, infiltration techniques, biofilter swales, curbless roads with swales, and porous pavements. However, there are questions about the possible detrimental impact of these alternative storm water control techniques on the transportation infrastructure. It is conceived that these techniques might be the cause of increased infrastructure maintenance costs. This research investigates the potential positive and negative impacts of alternative stormwater measures on transportation infrastructure, and attempts to assess the level of acceptance of these alternative measures by decision makers.
Sponsor:
Project Details:
- Start date: 05/2003
- Project Status: Completed
- Research Area: Infrastructure
- Topics: Environment, Pavements
Reports or Products:
- "Impact of Alternative Storm Water Management Approaches on Highway Infrastructure: Guide for Selection of Best Management Practices - Volume 1" (2006)
- "Impact of Alternative Storm Water Management Approaches on Highway Infrastructure: Project Task Reports - Volume 2" (2006)
- "Impact of Alternative Storm Water Management Approaches on Highway Infrastructure - Technical Summary" (2008)