It has always been a problem from the beginning of society to obtain basic water security by utilizing the rich potential of stormwater and restricting its harmful impacts. Due to the rapid change in the world today in terms of climate, geopolitics, economics, and populations, it has become more crucial to obtain water security compared to the past.
We already know that the byproduct of success usually consists of increased hardened surfaces, including walkways, parking lots, and roofs, which bring about combined sewer overflow, flooding, and increased runoff. The common solution for this is to set up a larger drainage pipe or increase the sewage treatment plant’s size to minimize sewage plant overflows into surfaces like waterways. The application of different storm water control techniques is a more productive, as well as environmentally sustainable solution.
Storm water Control
Passive stormwater management systems comprise of non-mechanical techniques of harvesting, cleaning, and storing rainwater such that it can be useful later or naturally absorb into the ground. The primary objective is to re-establish runoff to estimate the predevelopment environment. Some of the simple methods to achieve this and also assist in groundwater replenishment include: check dams, vegetative swales and rain gardens, and infiltration systems.
Every tool is significantly cheaper and generally easy to design and develop. Stormwater control systems can be applied to intentionally return water into the aquifer for future purposes, instead of letting it flow into the waterways with no use. Artificial groundwater recharge is developed to boost the natural replenishment or perhaps the surface waters’ percolation into the groundwater aquifers; this leads to a corresponding increase in the groundwater amount ready for extraction. Also, reducing stormwater runoff, sewage floor, and flooding to the watershed is reduced.
Check Dams
Check dams provide the slowest way possible for water to flow away from the property by making restrictions to flow. The primary goal of these dams is to increase the contact area and surface water’s residence time to facilitate the infiltration and to enlarge the groundwater storage. Water’s down movement is controlled by a myriad of factors including the presence of grass in the soil zone, vertical permeability if the soil, etc.
Rain Gardens
These are shallow retention swales that put together the advantages of groundwater recharge with aesthetics. A stormwater management’s side benefit is that trees are occasionally watered and the associated plant’s bio-retention can be used to buffer pollutants before they’re absorbed into the aquifer.
Infiltration Systems
Infiltration occurs naturally in undeveloped environments to a certain extent based on the soil’s nature to absorb water. In case the hardened surfaces of development take place, supplemental systems are required to take back infiltration to the initial pre-development conditions. Popular methods of achieving this are the applications of pervious surfaces and infiltration devices.
All the examples mentioned above are just but a few techniques that have been successfully implemented. Since water is known to become more and more limited, the significance of maintaining this essential resource will become better recognized. As a result, better and effective means of storm water control will be implemented.