Using Rainwater to Grow Livable Communities

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Using Rainwater to Grow Livable Communities
Sustainable Stormwater Best Management Practices
(BMPs)
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Basic Principles

• Treat water as a resource, not a waste product
• Design to mimic or replicate the natural
  hydrology of a site
• Design to address issues of water quality,
  quantity and amenity
• Accommodate the standards and expectations of the
  local community
• Infiltrate, detain, retain
• Start small, build from there
• Collaboration is key

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What Do BMPs Look Like?
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Rain Gardens Kansas City, MO

• Raingardens are bioretention areas that increase
  infiltration, recharge groundwater, and improve
  overall water quality

McCarthy Garden in Kansas City
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Ecoroof Chicago, IL

• An ecoroof is a roof that is planted with
  vegetation. It can reduce the heat imprint of a
  building and reduce off-site runoff

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Detention and Infiltration AreasBelleview, WA

• Detention and infiltration areas reduce the
  amount of off-site runoff and the speed with
  which water enters local waterbodies

High flow storage area next to recreational
facilities
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Right of Way Enhancements Portland, OR

• Street right-of-ways can be modified to capture
  runoff from roadways

Green Street Swales - New Seasons Market
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Residential Communities Denver, CO

• Detention areas, planted with native plants,
  perform a stormwater retention and water quality
  improvement function.

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What Can Sustainable Stormwater Practices Do
For Me?
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Benefits of Sustainable Stormwater Practices

• Reduce Runoff and Improve Water Quality
• Add Amenity
• Meet Regulations
• Save Money
• Enhance Funding Options
• Improve Wildlife Habitat

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Reduce Runoff Burnsville, MN

• Monitoring has shown that
• The rain gardens in the Burnsville rain garden
  demonstration project capture at least (and often
  more than) the first 0.9 of rainfall
• There is a 90 reduction in runoff rates from the
  neighborhood with rain gardens as compared to a
  similar neighborhood without rain gardens

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Add Amenity Philadelphia, PA
Vacant lot at 2300 North 3rd Street before
greening
Site was regraded to capture stormwater and
planted with trees, shrubs, and grass

• The Philadelphia Public Works Department is a
  partner in the Pennsylvania Horticultural
  Society's Neighborhood Transformation Initiative,
  which transforms vacant lots into
  community-friendly spaces.
• Converted spaces offer stormwater management
  benefits because the park-like spaces are
  outfitted with berms and swales that collect and
  infiltrate rainfall and runoff, and natural
  vegetation promotes evapotranspiration.

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Meet Regulations Truckee Meadows, NV

• A Regional Stormwater Management Quality Program
  was developed in response to TMDL and NPDES Phase
  I permit requirements
• Program components include
• Structural BMP Controls
• Land Use Planning and LID Tools
• Public Outreach

Vegetated swale at Costco parking lot
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Save Money Seattle, WA

• Seattle Public Utilities has projected that its
  Natural Drainage Installations are at least 25
  percent less expensive than traditional
  stormwater systems due to decreased build and
  infrastructure maintenance costs.

Broadview Green Grid Vegetated Swale
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Enhance Funding OptionsMilwaukee, WI

• The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District
  partnered with Alterra Coffee Roasters to
  renovate a historic site with stormwater
  management features to provide community amenity
  and stormwater management education

Stormwater is managed entirely on-site at the
former Milwaukee River Flushing Station, now an
Alterra Coffee Roasters café and interpretive
center
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Improve Wildlife HabitatOrlando, FL

• Wetlands restoration, greenspace corridors, and
  other environmental enhancements are standard
  features in Orlando's re-development projects.

Greenwood Urban Wetlands
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How can we implement BMPs in our community?