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Modeling Impacts of Post Development Water Quality BMPs

Published by the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers, St. Joseph, Michigan www.asabe.org

Citation:  21st Century Watershed Technology: Improving Water Quality and Environment Conference Proceedings, 29 March - 3 April 2008, Concepcion, Chile  701P0208cd.(doi:10.13031/2013.24286)
Authors:   J C Hayes, B J Barfield, S L Harp, M Chalavadi, E Stevens, M D Alexander, B T Bates
Keywords:   Water quality model, urban development, best management practices, low impact development, stormwater, sediment control, urban hydrology, bacteria, nutrients

IDEAL (Integrated Design, Evaluation and Assessment of Loadings)is an innovative, object based model developed to predict water quality benefits of LID (Low Impact Development) and/or BMPs (Best Management Practices) in urban post construction watersheds. The paper will describe scenarios from Greenville County, SC, USA using local rainfall and soils information. Results of this modeling effort are intended to show the effectiveness of various treatment trains. LID concepts and BMPs modeled include disconnecting storm drains, use of water barrels, bioretention cells, bioswales, sand filters, and VFS. Comparison is made with the use of LID concepts and BMPs with traditional wet and dry ponds. IDEAL features the capability of predicting distributed source area generation of runoff, sediment, nutrients, and pathogens in post construction watersheds. Procedures are also available to apply the model to the urban fringe with construction and agricultural source areas as well. The graphical user interface features drop and drag capability and works for large numbers of subwatershed source areas, conveyances, and BMPs arranged in treatment trains. Numbers and sizes of subwatersheds are limited only by computational time and appropriateness of the conveyance objects. BMPs are modeled with process based algorithms that take into account mass continuity and the processes of infiltration, settling, and sorption for chemicals and pathogens as well as mortality and growth for pathogens. Interarrival time of storms is considered, and rainfall input can either be single storm or a matrix of conditional probability of rainfall amounts, seasons, and infiltration or curve numbers.

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