StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Storm Water Management - Assignment Example

Cite this document
Summary
The paper "Storm Water Management" tells that stormwater is simply the water that originates during storms and snow melts. The soil has a limited ability to absorb or soak water, so the water that is left on the surface after absorption is carried away by the slopes on roads into the drainage…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER92.5% of users find it useful
Storm Water Management
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Storm Water Management"

Before urban development, the water used to get soaked in water and was recycled easily by the atmosphere. Moreover, it contributed to land enrichment. In addition to causing pollution, stormwater can cause stream erosions and increased flooding.

            Moreover increased flooding conditions cause property damage due to the chemicals and pollutants that get dissolved in the water runoff. Thus it is becoming a source of public health risk. Even though safety measures are being taken, but still there a high risk of public safety getting compromised.

            Stormwater can also become a source of pollution after heavy rainfalls. In many countries such as USA and UK, some regulations have been set to prevent such cases. Water runoff is a serious problem in Asian countries like Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh where there is an unusually great amount of rainfall during the monsoon period. The conditions of the drainage system in the above-mentioned countries are below average. A design for stormwater management in these countries is yet to be produced. The new constructions are also making the situation worst due to the fact that new roads designed are not given the proper slopes to get rid of the stormwater runoff problems.

            The contributing drainage region establishes the boundary restrictions for the flow of runoff - from the highest elevation to the lowest point of elevation. Some of the impacts of the development on the hydrological cycle include increased peak discharges of runoff compared to pre-development levels, Increased volume of runoff formed by each storm in comparison to the pre-development situation, decreased time in which runoff reaches the stream, chiefly if extensive drainage changes are made.

            For the solution to this storm-water management problem that has become a great issue all over the world, many approaches are considered but the two most commonly used approaches are:

  1. Conventional approaches
  2. Water-sensitive approaches.

            There are limitations in conventional stormwater management system because it only focuses on transportation and reduction of peak flow. The concept of a conventional stormwater drainage system is to transport all water draining off impervious surfaces directly to the nearest water body through a network of drains and pipes. There are no concepts of water quality and harvesting to help the ecosystem be healthy.

            The conventional approach focuses on the removal of stormwater as quickly as possible from a site or area to reduce the possibility of flooding. This goal is achieved by providing curbs, gutters, and pipeline systems that can discharge the water to the nearest surface water source. Although this is an efficient way to remove water quickly and prevent on-site flooding, it has proven to be devastating to downstream waters by increasing the frequency and magnitude of floods, altering stream channel morphology

alignment, cross-section geometry, streambed composition) and reducing groundwater recharge, all of which make less water available for drinking water withdrawal and stream base flows. Therefore, it can cause flooding. It has been shown (Monk & Till) that the conventional system for urban stormwater management is to:

  • Vegetation should be removed to a great extent
  • Resistant surfaces should be used for building large areas
  • Install pipes and constructed / hydraulically efficient channels that drain water away from an area as quickly as possible, by directly discharging stormwater into receiving water bodies.

            Water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) is a land planning and engineering design approach which describes the urban water cycle, as well as stormwater, groundwater, and water supply, into urban design to minimize environmental degradation and advance the aesthetic and recreational appeal. The use of water-efficient appliances to reduce potable water use;

  • Grey water reclaims as an alternate resource of water to conserve potable supplies.
  • Detention, instead of rapid conveyance, of stormwater;
  • Recycle, storage and infiltration of stormwater, instead of drainage system augmentation;
  • Use of vegetation for stormwater filtering use.
  • Water resourceful landscaping to reduce potable water consumption;
  • Protection of water-related environmental, recreational, and cultural values by minimizing the ecological footprint of a project associated with providing supply, wastewater, and stormwater services;
  • Localizedwastewater treatment and reuse systems to reduce potable water consumption and minimize environmentally harmful wastewater discharges;
  • Provision of stormwater or other recycled urban waters (in all cases subject to appropriate controls) to provide environmental water requirements for modified watercourses;
  • Flexible institutional arrangements to cope with increased uncertainty and variability in climate;
  • A focus on longer-term planning; and
  • A diverse portfolio of water sources, supported by both centralized and decentralized water infrastructure.

            In conclusion, Stormwater is an excellent alternative to non-portable use, it is easy to capture, manage and store on-site. Conventional urban stormwater management has focused on providing highly efficient drainage systems to rapidly collect and remove stormwater runoff. However, the system does not consider quality and harvesting management related to the aquatic ecosystem. Water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) can substitute the conventional method to maintain stormwater efficiently and also can help to improve ecological habitats. I believe that the water-sensitive system should be a priority when governments and companies deal with urban design.

Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“WSUD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words”, n.d.)
WSUD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1581693-wsud
(WSUD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words)
WSUD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1581693-wsud.
“WSUD Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 Words”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1581693-wsud.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Storm Water Management

Constructed subsurface wetlands for storm water management: UK and US

CONSTRUCTED SUBSURFACE WETLAND AND Storm Water Management: UK AND US (Author's name) (Institutional Affiliation) Key Words Water and wastewater management Abstract Constructed wetlands have stretched around the world and are being incorporated into industrial waste management.... Types of constructed wetlands for Storm Water Management: Subsurface gravel wetland Subsurface gravel wetlands (SGW) are mainly designed to remove pollutants completely through chemical conversion, uptake as well as settling of storm water runoffs....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Stormwater Management in an Urban Context

The paper "Stormwater management in an Urban Context" describes that stormwater quantity control has a strong relationship with quality management.... Water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) has emerged and implemented in many places as one of the best trends in the practice of urban stormwater management.... This system is called a stormwater management system.... A design for stormwater management in these countries is yet to be produced....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Storm Water Management for Hoover Creek Watershed

The paper "Storm Water Management for Hoover Creek Watershed" suggests that Epic Engineering which comprises a team of five civil and environmental engineering students presents a proposal in response to a stormwater management project in Hoover Creek by the National Park Service in West Branch, Iowa....
13 Pages (3250 words) Essay

Ecological Design

Some of the strategies and the models that can be used to address the urban problems found in modern societies and the climatic problems that are common social phenomena include Storm Water Management.... One such project is the Storm Water Management problem implemented in China, as a strategy for addressing the problems caused by the...
4 Pages (1000 words) Book Report/Review

Growing Water Supply Needs of a Rapidly Developing City such as Melbourne

The body is involved with day to day water management by looking at the catchments through treating, supplying, and recycling water.... "Growing water Supply Needs of a Rapidly Developing City such as Melbourne" paper looks at the role played by Melbourne water in addressing the growing supply needs of a rapidly developing city such as Melbourne, a cosmopolitan city that has experienced great expansion over the last decades.... The body controls most of the water resources in Australia, Victoria, and Melbourne....
6 Pages (1500 words) Research Proposal

Factors of Environmental Pollution during the Building Process

The infrastructures that are determinants of pollution levels in the proposed area include the utility facilities, waste disposal and management, stormwater management, and odor management.... All five types of pollution are considered: water pollution, light pollution, air pollution, noise pollution, and environmental pollution.... In the scoping matrix, some of these have been mentioned but it is poor designing of the water supply, stormwater, gas, sewerage, electricity, communication, and ventilation systems for the proposed building will present a challenge to the successful completion of the project....
7 Pages (1750 words) Term Paper

Advancement of Storm Water Tunnels

"Advancement of storm water Tunnels" paper explores the stormwater tunneling technique.... Tunnels were used mainly for mining, due to the recent chronological developments; tunnels have commonly been used for transport purposes that link different places and canals for diversion of water.... Before mining, in ancient history, tunnels were used to carry water.... In different countries such as ancient Rome, tunnels were mostly designed to carry water from various aqueducts nearby....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay

Canadian Draingage Systems

WSUD is all about integrating the cycle management of water into urban design and planning.... The paper "The Lake Drainage Design" states that in order to ensure proper drainage there must be gutters in the households that will direct rainy water pouring from the house roofs and foundation, unblocked and clear exterior drainages, hiring professional experts to inspects the drainage systems in the country.... The drainage design of the Canadian lakes seeks in determining the elements of water sensitive urban design (WSUD)....
5 Pages (1250 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us