Abstract
This paper deals with the design of a bioretention cell and an infiltration trench in a semi- arid micro watershed. The study area was analyzed by characteristics such as slope changes (S), direction and maximum length of the urban runoff (L), and soil use (runoff coefficient, Rc). The bioretention cell was designed by the calculation of variables such as drainage area (A), concentration time (Tc), rainfall intensity (i), maximum peak drained (Qmax), inlet and outlet runoff (Qa and Qout, respectively), temperature (T), evaporation (Ev), potential evapotranspiration (PEm), consumptive use (U) for tolerant plants to semi-arid climates, and soil infiltration capacity (Inf). To design the infiltration trench, only Tc, Qmax, and i were taken into account. The results showed that the designed bioretention cell could retain between 5.37% and 2.25% of runoff volume. As the efficiency of the bioretention cell can be defined by the need for additional irrigation, our results showed that the cell is inefficient in some of the dry months (November and December), even in years characterized by abundant rainfall. Besides, it was shown that the designed infiltration trench could store or infiltrate the water from typical rain events. Based on these results, it is the implementation of more Low-Impact Development (LID) for runoff management in the study area is recommended.
Highlights
Urbanization is a key human-induced alteration of local hydrological cycles
Ecologically-engineered systems, are characterized by their self-organization, which implies that only the initial structure of the system is human responsibility and that, once functioning, nature takes control of the system and defines its further composition
This paper deals with the design of a bioretention cell and an infiltration trench in a micro watershed located in a semi-arid climate
Summary
Urbanization is a key human-induced alteration of local hydrological cycles. Land cover changes due to urban sprawl raise imperviousness, thereby increasing runoff velocity and quantity and reducing the infiltration of stormwater [1]. Ecologically-engineered systems, (and LID practices such as stormwater wetlands, bioretention cells or green roofs), are characterized by their self-organization, which implies that only the initial structure of the system is human responsibility and that, once functioning, nature takes control of the system and defines its further composition Both ecological processes and the LID above-mentioned techniques are essentially powered by solar energy; they do not rely on off-site sources of energy (i.e., fossil fuels or electricity) nor in the input of matter to maintain a particular state [7]. Other alternatives for stormwater management are infiltration trenches, which are shallow excavations filled with filter material where storm runoff is temporarily stored for its subsequent percolation into the underlying soil They can be used alone or combined with other LID techniques, such as bioretention cells, permeable pavements, and wetlands, among others. We analyzed the efficiency of the proposed LID techniques through monthly water balances calculated for extreme conditions of rain and drought
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