Toolbox Overview
"[a]... recent national water quality inventory (1998) shows that of waters surveyed nearly 35 percent of rivers and streams, 45 percent of lakes, reservoirs, and ponds, and 44 percent of estuaries in the United States remain too polluted for fishing, swimming, and other uses. Many pollutants are delivered to these surface waters and to groundwater from diffuse sources, such as urban runoff, agricultural runoff, and atmospheric deposition of contaminants. The leading causes of impairment are nutrients, pathogens, siltation, oxygen-depleting substances, metals, and suspended solids."
(U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,The Quality of Our Nation’s Waters. A Summary of the National Water Quality Inventory: 1998 Report to Congress. EPA841-5-00-001.)
Here you will find:
- An overview of the Toolbox and "RAN" project at UVM
- An overview of Butler Farms and Oak Creek Village
- A virtual tour of Tributary 7 of Potash Brook
- Stormwater basics
- Stormwater Best Management Practices: Case Studies, Costs, and Effectiveness
- RAN instrumentation/data collection
- Relevant stormwater links and references
This stormwater management toolbox is designed to assist both the layperson and the watershed planner to better understand the issues and technologies which inform stormwater management at the home, street, and community scale.
Through our investigation of a typical modern suburban community in South Burlington, Vermont, we address relevant stormwater issues via community-specific examples.
If you click on the section of the index to the right, sections of the toolbox may be opened; you may also follow the prompt at the lower right of each page.
Note: The photographs and film clips which are included in this toolbox are slow to download on a dial-up connection.
Author's Introduction - The RAN Toolbox Project Report
Tim Conover White | Natural Resource Planning, '05 | 4/20/05
The RAN Stormwater Toolbox has been funded and produced by the USEPA "Redesigning the AmericanNeighborhood" (RAN) project at the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources at the University of Vermont.(1) The mission of the RAN project is to simultaneously assess water quality within the Potash Brook watershed ( Orthophoto of Potash Brook Watershed; Pioneer Environmental Associates, 2002) and facilitate stakeholder dialogue with regard to local storm water issues. The RAN project team has collected field data by monitoring pollutant levels at numerous locations in the watershed. Additionally, the team is working with the City of South Burlington and the residents of Butler Farms/Oak Creek Village residential developments.
The RAN Toolbox has been created as an educational service to the community to offer an overview of the fundamentals of stormwater within the context of a local setting. The need for educational outreach was identified through a local community survey which the RAN team produced in 2004. The results of the survey indicated a varying and inconsistent degree of storm water knowledge about residents.
The timing of the RAN project coincides with several events:
- The State of Vermont is recently rewritten stormwater legislation
- Many residential and commercial storm water permits are expired
- City of South Burlington has implemented a new stormwater utility (The City of South Burlington (VT) Homepage)
We decided that an easily accessible storm water toolbox would help promote a deeper understanding of storm water issues for all concerned. Further, it was reasoned that a storm water 'web home page' for the greater Burlington community would also be of benefit, as users could find relevant linked storm water information, pertinent data, and contacts for both local and national stormwater and watershed organizations.(5)
The premise of the RAN Toolbox is that the analysis of a familiar residential setting is more relevant for the local community than analysis of a distant or hypothetical location. In the interest of rooting the stormwater discussion within a local context, specific examples were used from neighboring Butler Farms/Oak Creek Village. This site represents an opportunity to assess the storm water impact caused by a traditional northeastern residential development. The design of this particular community with 1/5-1/3 acre building lots, 20% impervious surface, and limited stormwater treatment, is a common sight on the American landscape. Typically, this type of development is seen on the fringes of suburban development as it extends to the rural countryside. Put another way, the chosen community design is not an isolated case, but rather emblematic of a national trend in a development dynamic referred to as sprawl as defined by The Vermont Forum on Sprawl:
"Sprawl is dispersed, auto-dependent development outside of compact urban and village centers, along highways, and in rural countryside."
Certainly there are many definitions of sprawl, and it is not the intention to cast aspersions or slight the Butler Farms and Oak Creek Village communities. Concerns about sprawl concerns range from its impact issues on wildlife populations and habitat to its effects on the fabric of human social interaction. But more specific to storm water, there is a positive correlation between increased impervious surface area ratio (associated with sprawl) and increased storm water (volume) production. When increased impervious surface areas are combined with a lack of on-site stormwater management and treatment, this places a de facto burden on the receiving watershed. As this is a common phenomenon throughout New England and the country in general, the impervious surface sections, in particular, of the RAN Toolbox may be of interest to an audience beyond the greater Burlington community.
The impervious surface ratio of Butler Farms/Oak Creek Village is approximately 20%; while the overall impervious surface ratio of the Potash Brook watershed is estimated to be 22% (Pioneer Environmental Associates Final Report, January, 2003. - 2.2 MB download)). This fact does not however allow us to use a 'cookie cutter' comparison of BF/OCV to other locations in the watershed, as stormwater runoff is influenced by a number of factors including soil type, geomorphology and general land use. One cannot conclude that stormwater runoff from a similar community in another area of the watershed will have identical characteristics or impacts. However, certain dynamics of runoff are constant, and similarities may be observed between BF/OCV and other locations. Research has clearly demonstrated that land area with 20% or more impervious area will cause downstream impacts including erosion, chemical contamination of receiving waters, personal property damage and loss of ecological diversity and habitat. It has been well documented that watershed impacts can be observed in watersheds with as little as 10 percent impervious surface ratio.
Continued development in Chittenden County will likely contribute a greater storm water burden to the Potash Brook watershed through the addition of more impervious surfaces. Given current growth and development patterns, the greater Burlington community will benefit from an understanding the current impacts on the local watershed which will help inform stormwater treatment design choices for the future. Such design choices at the municipal and private-sector level could reverse the environmentally destructive trends in storm water runoff which have been documented within the Potash Brook watershed.
As a disclaimer, the use of the 'worldwide web' for educational outreach is not novel in itself. However, while other electronic or 'web' stormwater resources exist (7), and Vermont watershed organizations are represented on the web (8), there are no references which document the relationship between a specific local (to Vermont) residential development and storm water runoff generated by that community during storm events. And while stormwater runoff concerns have received much attention, locally and nationally, the investigation of runoff patterns generated whithin a specific community is an opportunity to address upstream and downstream connections. In order for alternative community development designs which effectively manage storm water to be championed, there needs to be ownership or responsibility for the storm water which is generated. Hence, the photo-documentation and theoretical calculations in the RAN Toolbox are offered as a general example illustrating storm water loading in one geographical area.
With regard to content and design of the RAN toolbox, it we found that no web based stormwater resources utilized a down-loadable video format to document the comparison of storm event and base-line conditions of affected tributaries and receiving waters. We felt that,if there were a way to take a 'Virtual Tour' of the tributary, that watershed impact could be demonstrated in a more accessible manner than a guided community tour in the midst of a peak storm event. The implications of impervious surface loading, in particular, can be abstract for the layperson to grasp, and the intention of this project is to document actual storm events and integrate background themes and dynamics of storm water runoff so that a cause - effect relationship in a 'backyard' context might be presented. The sheer volume of stormwater which is generated by 30 acres of impervious surface is impressive to witness, and we felt that if that experience could be documented and shared, the community might have a context for the storm water issues which they face. The RAN Toolbox approach is to pinpoint geographic locations and document the contrast between base flow conditions and peak storm loading, in both upstream and downstream locations, to reveal the relative effects of the BF/OCV stormwater contribution to the tributary. It should be noted that this is considered to be a 'soft' comparison, as opposed to a comprehensive tally of metered readings at discharge points. The 'Virtual Tour' is chiefly a visual documentation. There are doubtless natural hydrological conditions which contribute to the fluctuations in surface water flow, in addition to the runnoff which can be attributed to the BF/OCV communities. However, the photographic and digital documentation may hopefully provide a general framework for increased storm water education and understanding.
The specific design of the RAN Toolbox was realized through the use of a web-building software which employed both code and design modes. As a note, the RAN Toolbox was authored by a member of the RAN team who had no prior web building experience. This may be relevant, as many communities face storm water issues and are faced with the task of raising consciousness by embracing certain 'web' based technologies. As such, a similar web project might be of benefit and where appropriate, the user is invited to use the RAN toolbox as a template. It is suggested that a short web-building course be taken by the designer to minimize the learning curve for such an endeavor. As a caveat, it might also be noted that ongoing 'web' maintenance to manage broken links, and update information, technology and community news might be factored into the scope of the project.
The RAN toolbox will continue to evolve over time, as storm water technology is quickly evolving. Within the Toolbox, it was not the intention to document every stormwater technology which exists, but rather offer a suite of practices which may of use locally to address the fundamental issues of stormwater management and treatment.
The overall role of the RAN toolbox is intended for educational purposes only, and it should be noted that the ultimate protection of our watersheds rests in the hands of the public. It is not our place to offer a particular agenda, or represent any individual or entity, but rather offer unbiased information, data and research. We strive to support community dialogue where possible in the interest of stakeholder discussion. None-the-less, it is our hope that through education and informed action, we may preserve treasured natural resources.
There is one take-away message from the RAN Toolbox: continued growth in both rural and suburban settings will continue to place additional burden on the local watershed if we do not employ residential and commercial designs to mitigate the storm water which is generated. This need not be an altruistic effort on the part of the developer; research has shown that low impact design can be accomplished for similar costs as traditional approaches. Further, home buyers are willing to pay a premium for such new approaches. Historically, considerations such as ecological impact and down stream effect have not been of primary concern in stormwater management or community development. Storm water treatment costs money, regardless of technology. Yet the alternative methods for treatment are quickly becoming economically viable on an acre per acre basis compared to traditional methods. The solutions which are employed on-site, rather than end-of-the-pipe fixes, can significantly reduce sewerage infrastructure and treatment costs in new construction. In the debate of 'who pays?' the irony is that storm water runoff solutions can take the form of esthetically pleasing value-adds, which have been proven to increase property value and contribute to community enjoyment. But these benefits may be seen as intangible at the outset until a model is locally established and proven. The Potash Brook watershed community presently has an opportunity to consider these realities.
Moving forward, there are two distinct categories which merit consideration: the retrofitting of existing homes and developments, and the issue of approving newly designed communities which incorporate appropriate stormwater treatment. Clearly, in the latter scenario, the city or government structure has control over what receives building permits. This places the responsibility on the developer for such improvements. But is it just to simply assign that responsibility to the new development projects? Would this exonerate the public from involvement? Retrofitting is perhaps more complicated, as the municipality has, in a sense, already paid for infrastructure costs. For the financial responsibility to fall on the individual property owner, perhaps a tax credit is one route which would offset expenses. Clearly the questions and issues around these scenarios are complex and merit dialogue among the state, city and community.
Just as the issue of pollution credits and 'right to pollute' issues must be decided, we need to seek measures to reverse storm water impacts which presently exist. We have a very simple choice ahead: we can wait for the enforcement of policies created at the government level, or we can be proactive in retrofitting our communities to the extent possible and drive the transition to watershed sensitive design through demand in the market place. The public has the power to change building trends through 'voting' with our dollars. In the purchase of new homes, we can seek out housing developments which incorporate storm water management technologies that preserve, rather than negatively impact, our natural resources.
Ultimately, storm water treatment can be a shared responsibility between the community, city and state. Hopefully in the on-going community dialogue on stormwater management and treatment in Vermont, all stakeholders will be heard and solutions will be chosen which can mitigate the effects of anthropogenic development on our local watersheds.
Finally, as noted in the RAN Toolbox, the small steps we take as individuals can have tremendous effects at the community level. From rain barrels to simple infiltration techniques, there are many options for taking responsibility for the storm water runoff which we generate from our homes and building lots. As the RAN Toolbox concludes: "We are all connected."
Yet it is our choice how to celebrate that simple truth, and embrace the options and technologies to protect our shared natural resources.
- The RAN Toolbox is presented to all interested parties sans user fee
- References
- Community Links