Chris Sanderson
CE 547: GIS in Water Resources
Engineering
Project Proposal
EPA Low Impact Development (LID)
guidelines seek to improve the quality of stormwater
runoff from urban watersheds and reduce runoff quantities. LID development, or re-development practices, address storm
water at the source through a variety of methods including permeable paving
surfaces, vegetated rooftops, and bioretention
facilities. LID is intended to restore natural watershed hydrologic and
ecological functions.
The setting of this study is the
30.5 mi2 San
Antonio catchment above the Mariposa Basin in on the west side of Albuquerque,
NM. The Rio Grande is the receiving water body for Albuquerque area stormwater runoff. This study will employ ArcMap to model sub basin hydrologic characteristics under
various development scenarios, including a standard development build-out
scenario and a LID build-out scenario. The output of this model will compare stormwater runoff volumes under current conditions,
standard development build-out projections, and LID build-out projections.
Common stormwater
pollutants include hydrocarbons, pesticides, sediments,
herbicides,
toxic metals, and coliform bacteria. The arid, high desert setting of
Albuquerque, NM
poses unique challenges to stormwater managers as
most precipitation is short duration and high intensity, occurring during the
summer monsoon season. First, summer precipitation events occur when the Rio
Grande water level is low, thus leading to greater ecological impacts from
urban runoff. Secondly, the accumulation of pollutants emanating “first flush”
from torrential storms contains a great deal of contaminants. Stormwater managers in Albuquerque are particularly
concerned with elevated levels of coliform bacteria and sediment. This project
will focus stormwater runoff volume, assuming
pollutant loads will decrease along with lower flows.
The following items will be
included in project outputs:
●
Determine current land uses
●
Determine current
permeability/runoff coefficient
●
Establish LID runoff coefficients
●
Determine runoff volumes under Q1,
Q5, Q10 storm events
Curb Cuts at The Pavillions
Shopping Center, Albuquerque, NM