Rain Barrels Research Articles

The Response of Runoff Pollution Control to Initial Runoff Volume Capture in Sponge City Construction Using SWMM

Source facilities can manage stormwater runoff pollutants while also limiting runoff volume in China’s sponge city construction. However, there is no apparent link between source volume control and runoff pollution reduction. This research uses SWMM to develop a model based on the basic data of a city’s catchment zone in northern China in order to statistically examine the response relationship between the initial runoff volume capture of sponge city construction and the reduction effect of stormwater runoff pollution. Based on the dimensionless constant of the runoff pollution control curve, we suggested a novel approach for evaluating runoff pollution control effectiveness. This method was used to examine the response relationship between runoff volume control and runoff pollution control in three typical initial runoff volume capture facilities in the study area, namely bioretention, permeable pavement, rain barrels, and terminal storage tanks, under various design rainfall conditions. The dimensionless constant (Dc) has good practical application value and can quantitatively quantify the control effect of various facilities on stormwater runoff pollution. The Dc value of the source facilities is higher than that of the terminal control facilities, indicating that the source facilities have a higher ability to reduce rainwater runoff pollution than the terminal facilities, particularly the infiltration facilities. The research ideas and evaluation methods proposed in this paper provide an alternative approach for selecting and optimizing facilities during the planning and designing stages of sponge city construction, which can also be used in the monitoring and evaluation stage after completion to carry out a more effective evaluation of sponge facilities’ effects.

Evaluation of the Hydrological Performance of Infiltration Trench with Rainfall-Watershed-Infiltration Trench Experimental Setup

Urbanization and population growth result in an increase of insufficient groundwater recharge. In order to overcome the adverse effects of urbanization, low impact development (LID) best management practices (BMPs) are introduced. LIDs are nature-based solutions, also called green infrastructures, that have the ability to control both the amount and the quality of stormwater runoff. Rain barrels, vegetative swale, green roofs, bioretention, permeable pavement, and detention ponds are among the examples of LIDs. Within this context, the infiltration trench is also one of the important LID types and is widely implemented in settlement areas. Field-scale experiments may not be sufficient in determining the design criteria of infiltration trenches. Controlled experiments should be conducted in order to identify the optimum design criteria of infiltration trenches for best practices. In this study, the hydrological performance of the infiltration trench is investigated by conducting experiments using an open-lab large-scale rainfall-watershed-infiltration trench (RWI) experimental setup. The RWI experimental setup is built at the Avcılar Campus of Istanbul University-Cerrahpaşa and consists of an artificial rainfall system, an impermeable drainage area, and an infiltration trench. The effect of gravel size, berm height, and rainfall type on the hydrological behavior of the infiltration trench is tested by conducting several experiments. During these experiments, the overflow rate and the drainage rate are measured at the exit of the pipes, located on the front wall and on the base of the infiltration trench, respectively. Results show that the magnitude and lag time of the overflow rate hydrograph are affected by rainfall intensity, gravel size, and berm height significantly. On the other hand, minor changes on the drainage rate hydrograph are observed under different rainfall intensities, gravel sizes, and berm heights. Based on the outcomes of this study, the engineering design guidelines of infiltration trenches are elaborated.

Investing in Urban Blue–Green Infrastructure—Assessing the Costs and Benefits of Stormwater Management in a Peri-Urban Catchment in Oslo, Norway

Cities are challenged by climate change impacts, such as extreme rainfall events that affect conventional urban water management systems via increased sewage water overflows resulting in water quality deterioration and urban floods causing infrastructure damage. Investments in blue–green infrastructure (BGI) are increasingly considered to address these issues. However, these should be cost-effective. In this study, the effectiveness of five different BGI strategies and one grey strategy are assessed for a peri-urban catchment area in Oslo (Grefsen) using a cost–benefit analysis. The strategies include (i) wadis; (ii) green roofs; (iii) raingardens, rain barrels and wadis; (iv) infiltration crates; (v) water squares, and (vi) a separate sewage system. Besides economic effectiveness, the study also aims to identify the proper protection level by comparing cost–benefit ratios and net benefits for 60-min rainfall events occurring once every 5, 20, and 100 years (M5, M20, and M100), concerning both the current situation and under future climate change (using the Representative Concentration Pathway 8.5). The analyses revealed the highest BC ratios for wadis (12.0–17.3), separate sewage systems (7.7–15.1), and a combination of raingardens, rain barrels, and wadis (1.6–2.3). Strategies dimensioned for less frequent but more intensive rainfall events yielded higher BC ratios. Results for infiltration crates were difficult to interpret and were found to be very sensitive to input parameters. The other strategies implied a negative BC ratio. The study concludes that investments in BGI in Grefsen, Oslo, can be positively judged from a social–economic perspective and provide suitable information for water-related decision makers to decide upon the strategy selection and the appropriate flood protection level.

Public preferences for green infrastructure improvements in Northern New Jersey: a discrete choice experiment approach.

Significant water pollution caused by flooding due to heavy precipitation and extreme weather events has become a considerable problem in urbanized areas such as in Northern New Jersey. These cities experience heavy downpour-related contamination and water pollution when stormwater and untreated sewage are diverted through combined sewer overflow drainage systems to adjacent water bodies. Green infrastructure has proven a successful intervention method for mitigating these unintended environmental consequences. However, while the effects of CSOs and the ability of GI to reduce them are well documented, there has been considerably less study addressing public preferences and willingness to pay for GI-based solutions. As such, this study seeks to understand these facets of GI management in urbanized areas of New Jersey, focusing on Newark, Paterson, and Elizabeth townships. A discrete choice experiment method was used to analyze the willingness of residents to pay for additional CSO infrastructure through the installation of GI options such as bioretention gardens, rain barrels, and green roofs. Furthermore, study identified attributes such as secondary benefits, proximity, and water retention that respondents found the most utility in when choosing GI stormwater management interventions. We found that several attributes, including improved air quality ($58.60), increased water supply ($49.71), and closer proximity ($110.01–$125.97) had the highest utility and similarly were associated with a higher willingness to pay than other tested attributes. These findings are important in assessing the overall attitude toward these fixtures, and may be critical in crafting local policy and development, especially to address environmental equity.

Preliminary Model-Based Evaluation of Water Conservation Strategies in a Semi-Arid Urban Zone

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency stormwater management model was applied to a semi-arid urban micro watershed. The sub-catchment’s current features were modeled as scenario A, while the insertion of a set of LID technologies (rain barrels, bioretention cells, permeable pavement, and infiltration trenches) was represented as scenario B. A third scenario (C), considering only the most feasible LID technologies, was also modeled. All the scenarios were evaluated under two representative storm events (30 and 9 mm in two consecutive days, and 39 mm of rainfall in one day) occurred during the sampling performed in this study. Water quality was also simulated for a 30-mm storm event and compared against field assessment results after a real 30-mm storm event. Through the model, the inefficiency of current evacuation methods after 30- and 39-mm storm events was demonstrated. Simulation of scenario B showed that LID technologies could satisfactorily diminish peak flows generated by the selected storm events as well as runoff-conveyed pollution, while the realistic scenario allowed a lower but satisfactory hydrological performance and almost the same runoff quality than scenario B. This preliminary study could contribute to spread awareness about the benefits of LID technologies in semi-arid urban areas of the developing world.

Home with Hope: Green Infrastructure EEE 495: Urban Water Projects

Urban landscapes have serious impacts on water quality through the disruption of the hydrologic cycle. The Purdue University course, Environmental and Ecological Engineering 49500: Urban Water Projects, seeks to use student-led service-learning projects to improve both water quality and quantity in the Wabash River water-shed. This year, students investigated and implemented strategies to guarantee that previous implementations succeed well into the future. Two students, Victoria Chillscyzn and Madeline McIntosh, were part of a team working with the local nonprofit Home with Hope. Through interviews, a survey, and site visits, the team determined action items to improve the form and function of the installations. A grant was submitted and accepted through Purdue Student Service-Learning Grant Program for Community Service/Service-Learning Projects to fund an additional rain barrel and an edible garden at the nonprofit. Additionally, educational materials and a maintenance schedule were created to bolster care of the site. This course gave the authors the ability to give back to the local community in a meaningful and relevant way.

The use of low impact development technologies in the attenuation of flood flows in an urban area: Settat city (Morocco) as a case

Low Impact Development (LID) is an approach to urban drainage design and planning and it is considered to be an effective technical solution to manage urban runoff. The current work demonstrates how LID can be integrated in the management of urban runoff in order to significantly decrease a large volume of stormwater before it reaches the receiving water bodies. To demonstrate our approach, the Personal Computer Stormwater Management Model (PCSWMM) was constructed to simulate the hydrological process in the urban area of the Settat city. Afterwards, the model was calibrated and validated by using four observed stormwater events. Two LID practices, permeable pavement (PP) and rain barrel (RB), were used to estimate their effectiveness under four scenarios (no LID –PP –RB -PP+RB) and four designed rainfall events (with return periods of 5, 10, 25, and 50 years). Results show that the LID practices significantly contributed to surface runoff mitigation. The combination of Permeable Pavement and Rain Barrel (Scenario 4) offered the best runoff control capacity, with a removal rate of 57%. The flooding and overflowing drainage system issues were also remediated after the LID application. Finally, this study provides additional guidance for decision-making process regarding the implementation of appropriate LID practices in the study area.

A Case of Hypercalcemia in an Immunocompetent Patient with Disseminated Mycobacterium marinum Infection with a Rain Barrel as the Most Likely Primary Source.

Infection with Mycobacterium marinum is common in fish, and so human infection usually arises from contact with contaminated water or fish. A solitary papulonodular lesion on a finger or hand is the typical presentation. Disseminated infections are rare and mostly seen in immunocompromised patients.We present a rare case of disseminated M. marinum infection presenting with polyarthritis, tenosynovitis, dactylitis, and (sub)cutaneous and intramuscular lesions in an immunocompetent patient. This case was complicated by hypercalcemia, renal failure and eventually death. A contaminated rain barrel was most likely the primary source of the infection.LEARNING POINTSGiven the similarities, it is key to differentiate Crohn’s disease from intestinal tuberculosis as early as possible.Patients undergoing colonoscopy for possible Crohn’s disease should have colonic biopsy samples sent for AFB culture.Consider investigations for intestinal tuberculosis in uncontrolled Crohn’s disease where intestinal tuberculosis has not been worked up previously.

Citizens’ viewpoints on stormwater Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) in Brazil

Floods are among the most dangerous and destructive hazards in the world. Stormwater Beneficial Management Practices (BMPs) are a set of strategies that can assist in reducing urban floods and their damages by capturing surface runoff and promoting infiltration. Engagement of citizens in the selection of stormwater BMPs may facilitate the decision-making processes and increase the chance of adopting and maintaining them. Due to existence of catastrophic floods in Brazil, implementing BMPs is essential in the urban areas. The objective of this study is to understand the viewpoints of citizens about a set of stormwater BMPs in Brazil. Moreover, we aim to comprehend whether diverging viewpoints about the BMPs can be associated with existence of different layers in the society. For this purpose, online surveys were used to access wide and diverse groups of citizens from different ages, levels of education and income, as well as geographical location. The questions and descriptions of BMPs were prepared in an accessible language, and then disseminated through various platforms. The responses of more than 1000 participants were analyzed using descriptive and statistical methods. Our results show that the participants found the retention and detention basins, as well as permeable pavement as the most efficient BMPs. Moreover, considering the small-scale practices, although lot related BMPs are considered less efficient, citizens are willing to use green roof, bioretention, and rain barrels in their properties. In addition, most of the respondents support public investments on stormwater BMPs. Our analyses show that participants' age and level of education statistically influenced their choice of BMPs and willingness to pay for their maintenance and construction. These results can help Brazilian policy makers to prepare flood management plans by including stormwater BMPs that would be more accepted by the population. In addition, proposing practices that are aligned with citizens’ perceptions creates a sense of responsibility, and is in accordance with the Brazilian New Framework of Sanitation that includes public participation in policy making.

Characteristics and growing practices of Baltimore City farms and gardens

Paralleling growing international interest in the cultivation of crops and livestock in cities—hereafter urban agriculture (UA)—Baltimore City has developed a robust network of urban farms and gardens and UA practitioners, particularly over the past decade. Despite the city’s prominent UA scene, the nature of UA in Baltimore has not been thoroughly characterized in existing literature to date. We used a survey and on-site observations of 104 urban farms and gardens participating in the Safe Urban Harvests Study to explore site characteristics; growing practices; produce production, harvest, and distribution; and contaminant history and testing. Our results demonstrate a diversity of characteristics and growing practices across the UA operations in the city, especially when comparing among community gardens, urban farms, educational gardens, donation gardens, and therapy gardens. This study illuminates the size and scope of UA operations in Baltimore, with 104 participating sites occupying nearly 10 ha of land, producing an estimated 43,000 kg of produce per growing season, and engaging approximately two percent of city residents. Most sites engaged in best practices for reducing risks from potential soil contamination, including having tested soils for contaminants, growing in raised beds, and importing growing media. The use of renewable inputs varied; most sites did not use chemical pesticides or fertilizers (non-renewable inputs), however most sites did not use rain barrels or on-site composting (practices that renew inputs) either. Our findings also suggest that residents living within neighborhoods that have limited access to grocery stores with healthy foods do not necessarily have limited access to urban farms and gardens relative to other city residents. These data will enable UA practitioners, educators, and policymakers in Baltimore to tailor their programs and policies to address the needs of local growers. Lessons learned from the survey instrument could inform research exploring UA operations in other cities.

Evaluation of land-use, climate change, and low-impact development practices on urban flooding

ABSTRACT We investigated the potential influence of land-use and climate change on urban hydrology for an urbanized watershed located in Columbia, South Carolina (USA). The Personal Computer Storm Water Management Model (PCSWMM) was used as an urban hydrology model to formulate the low-impact development (LID) controls on runoff for flood mitigation. We used ensemble projections provided by the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP) for the climate change assessment. The results for future periods (2038–2069) show an increase in mean annual runoff from 40% to 70%. The LID mitigation strategies were compared based on the rain barrel, the rain garden, and a combination of the two approaches to evaluate the potential reduction in urban flooding. It is recommended that LID practices should be used synergistically with improved drainage facilities for successful stormwater management. This analysis will help stakeholders to develop strategies to minimize the socio-economic impacts due to urban flooding.

Performance of lot-level low impact development technologies under historical and climate change scenarios

Low impact development (LID) systems have potential to make urban cities more sustainable and resilient, particularly under challenging climate conditions. To quantify performance capabilities, modeling results for an array of combinations of LIDs are described using PCSWMM at lot-level to examine performance of individual LIDs on volume and peak flow reductions. Among the four LIDs studied: rain barrel (RB), vegetative swale (VS), bioretention cell (BC), and permeable pavement (PP), PP at lot-level demonstrated the best capability for reducing surface runoff volumes and peak runoff rates under historical weather conditions, while BC showed similar capability for reduction of runoff volumes but minimal peak flow reduction. With PP as the controlling method at lot-level, the maximum percentage reduction of runoff volume for a 2-year storm is 58% whereas for a 100-year storm, the runoff volume reduction is 20%. These results mean the extent of flooding that may arise from the 100-year storm is reduced, but not eliminated. Effectively, the 100-year storm volumes with LID are devolved to have flooding equivalent to a 25-year storm. Under climate change scenarios, performance for all LIDs declined at various levels, where BC was the most resilient LID for a climate change scenario, such that projected 2-year or 5-year storms with climate change will have its impact devolved with LID in place, to result in similar volumes and peaks without LID under historical conditions. Furthermore, even with an assembly of lot-level LIDs distributed throughout the community, there is not attenuation to substantial degrees of flooding for major events, but there can be effective control for water quantity for small (2- to 5-years in particular) storm events.

Revealing the Challenges of Smart Rainwater Harvesting for Integrated and Digital Resilience of Urban Water Infrastructure

Smart rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems can automatically release stormwater prior to rainfall events to increase detention capacity on a household level. However, impacts and benefits of a widespread implementation of these systems are often unknown. This works aims to investigate the effect of a large-scale implementation of smart RWH systems on urban resilience by hypothetically retrofitting an Alpine municipality with smart rain barrels. Smart RWH systems represent dynamic systems, and therefore, the interaction between the coupled systems RWH units, an urban drainage network (UDN) and digital infrastructure is critical for evaluating resilience against system failures. In particular, digital parameters (e.g., accuracy of weather forecasts, or reliability of data communication) can differ from an ideal performance. Therefore, different digital parameters are varied to determine the range of uncertainties associated with smart RWH systems. As the results demonstrate, smart RWH systems can further increase integrated system resilience but require a coordinated integration into the overall system. Additionally, sufficient consideration of digital uncertainties is of great importance for smart water systems, as uncertainties can reduce/eliminate gained performance improvements. Moreover, a long-term simulation should be applied to investigate resilience with digital applications to reduce dependence on boundary conditions and rainfall patterns.

Studi Perencanaan Sumur Injeksi Dalam Upaya Penanggulangan Genangan Di Kawasan Perkotaan (Studi Kasus Di RW. 8 Dan 9 – Kelurahan Blimbing, Kota Malang)

RW.8 and 9 areas, Blimbing Sub-district, Malang city is one of the areas that often occur inundation due to changes in land cover and narrowing of drainage channels. The solution is the manufacture of injection wells to determine the inundation, planning, and effectiveness of injection wells at the research site. To analyze it, modeling rain inundation a return period of 2 years and 5 years using Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) 5.1 application. Calibration results showed for the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) value, modeling discharge and measurable discharge for a return period of 2 years is 17.3%, and a return period of 5 years is 20.9%. The simulation results showed the capacity of existing drainage channels for a return period of 2 years and 5 years resulted in 8 channels overflowing from 42 existing channels with the number of injection wells needed as many as 45 injection wells for 8 water catchment areas. The effectiveness value of the application of injection wells using rain barrels obtained results for a return period of 2 years is 66.67%-93.33% with average injection well effectiveness is 84.66% and a return period of 5 years is 66%-95% with average injection well effectiveness is 84.78%.Â

Urban Flood Management through Urban Land Use Optimization Using LID Techniques, City of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

In recent years, many urban areas in Ethiopia have experienced frequent flood events as a result of climate change and urban sprawl. Unplanned and unsustainable poor urban storm water management strategies will aggravate the impact and frequency of flood occurrence. In this study, impacts of urbanization and climate change on generated flood magnitude are analyzed using the urban hydrological model of Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) and Low Impact Development (LID) sustainable land use optimization techniques. Three rainfall distribution patterns (TS1, TS2 and TS3) in combination with rainfall duration periods of 10, 30 and 60 min and a pessimistic climate change scenario of RCP 4.5 compared to RCP 8.5 are used for the analysis purpose for selected infiltration and storage LID techniques (Bio-Retention Cell, Infiltration Trench and Rain Barrel). The study results showed that combined LID techniques have a significant impact on urban flood reduction of up to 75%. This significant amount of flood reduction is greater than the amount of excess flood magnitude which occurred as a result of climate change using the most pessimistic climate change scenario. The study results also confirmed that rainfall patterns have a significant impact on peak discharge for shorter rainfall durations. This study highly recommends using cost effective, easy and environmental adaptive and sustainable LID techniques for urban flood management in addition to existing drainage structures.

Modeling the Effectiveness of Rain Barrels, Cisterns, and Downspout Disconnections for Reducing Combined Sewer Overflows in a City-Scale Watershed

Modeling the Effectiveness of Rain Barrels, Cisterns, and Downspout Disconnections for Reducing Combined Sewer Overflows in a City-Scale Watershed

Modelling the applicability of Low Impact Development (LID) technologies in a university campus in the Philippines using Storm Water Management Model (SWMM)

Progressive land development increases the imperviousness of an area which disrupts the water balance and results to the degradation of water quality, high peak flow, and excessive volume of surface runoff. One efficient approach to address this issue on water is the application of Low impact development (LID) technologies. LID helps improve the water quality and water quantity of an area to maximize its land-use. In this study, the eight LID technologies available in SWMM namely, bio retention cell, infiltration trench, rain garden, green roof, permeable pavement, rain barrel, rooftop disconnection, and vegetative swale were applied in simulating the area of the De La Salle University - Laguna Campus, a pre-developed area in Binan, Laguna which currently undergoes land-use change. This study area was simulated without the use of LID, with the use of varying LID, and capturing the 80, 90, and 95 percent of all the rainfall from 1989-2018. Digital elevation model and disaggregated rainfall data were used as input in SWMM. The ArcMap 10.4 was utilized to delineate and produce the three sub catchments with an area of 24.13 ha., 10.18 ha., and 4.34 ha., respectively while Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) software was used in analyzing these sub catchments to produce water balance values. Results showed that more than 60 percent of the disaggregated rainfall was under the one-year return period. Also, bioretention cell with 80th percentile rainfall maximizes the reduction of runoff while infiltration trenches with 95th percentile rainfall were the most effective in increasing the infiltration among the eight LID technologies. It was also indicated that the surface runoff in first sub catchment was reduced to more than 80% using bioretention cell, infiltration trench, rain garden, or rooftop disconnection. Finally, the area of a sub catchment has a positive correlation in its reduced runoff while a negative correlation in its infiltration when integrating the LID technologies. This research can be a resource for further studies and in to support SDGs 6, 9, and 11 to have a better water management, resilient infrastructures, and attain sustainable cities and communities.

도심 공공건물 저영향개발 계획 및 유출량 최적화 계획 : 서울 농업공화국(가칭)을 중심으로

Purpose: The purpose of this research is to evaluate rainwater storage capacity of green roof system with management trains and to find optimized alternatives. Low Impact Development(LID) techniques has been introduced and researched in Korea mitigating urban flooding issues caused by rapid urbanization and climate change. The management train comprised of several LID components and its integrated capacity is required in real projects, so this research set up the optimization process and conducted it. Method: In this study, the Magok Community Farm was selected as the target site, and the appropriate size was optimized for efficient stormwater runoff treatment to each catchment area when applying multiple LID components combination through the train plan of LID techniques. Bio-retention Cell, Rain Barrel, Infiltration Trench, Vegetative Swale were selected among LID technology factors by reviewing rainfall data and soil conditions, and parameters of appropriate values were derived and applied for analysis through EPA SWMM model. Result: This paper showed that the appropriate size calculation of LID facilities is more effective in terms of efficient rainwater management. This study is expected to be used as a reference material for the future LID method linkage plan and calculation of an appropriate scale.

Efficient integration of IoT-based micro storages to improve urban drainage performance through advanced control strategies

The smart rain barrel (SRB) consists of a conventional RB with storage volumes between 200 and 500 L, which is extended by a remotely (and centrally) controllable discharge valve. The SRB is capable of releasing stormwater prior to precipitation events by using high-resolution weather forecasts to increase detention capacity. However, as shown in a previous work, a large-scale implementation combined with a simultaneous opening of discharge valves clearly reduced the effectiveness. The aim of this work was to systematically investigate different control strategies for wet weather by evaluating their impact on sewer performance. For the case study, an alpine municipality was hypothetically retrofitted with SRBs (total additional storage volume of 181 m3). The results showed that combined sewer overflow (CSO) volume and subsequently pollution mass can be reduced by between 7 and 67% depending on rain characteristics (e.g., rain pattern, amount of precipitation) and an applied control strategy. Effectiveness of the SRBs increases with lower CSO volume, whereas more advanced control strategies based on sewer conditions can clearly improve the system's performance compared to simpler control strategies. For higher CSO volume, the SRBs can postpone the start of an CSO event, which is important for a first-flush phenomenon.

Assessment of low impact development stormwater management alternatives in the city of Bojnord, Iran

ABSTRACT This study addresses the stormwater management challenges and opportunities in the recently growing city of Bojnord in the northeast of Iran assessing six Low Impact Development (LID) stormwater management alternatives using hydrological, social and economic criteria through a questionnaire survey and modeling effort. Hydrological and economic effects were assessed using the SWMM model and cost analysis, respectively. Different LID alternatives were evaluated using six different multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) approaches including TOPSIS, VICOR, SAW, MEW, ELECTRE III, and NFM. Due to differences in the ranking results of the MCDM methods, three aggregation methods of Rank average, Borda, and Copeland were used to reach consistency in the ranking. Rain barrel installation has been assessed as the most preferred LID alternative and the pervious asphalt as the least preferred one. The evaluation and ranking of the alternatives with MCDM approaches facilitated the effective prioritization of sustainable LID alternatives according to various management objectives.