—Nonpoint source pollution in the form of stormwater runoff is one of the most important emerging threats to ecosystems along the coastal margins of the United States. A wide diversity of potentially toxic chemicals is commonly found in stormwater. These include the various pesticides, petroleum hydrocarbons, heavy metals, and other common contaminants that originate from commercial, industrial...

Events that are referred to as geysers have been observed in stormwater or combined sewer systems and are associated with jets of water rising through manholes to a considerable distance above the ground surface. Visual observations suggest that air may be a significant component of the jet. The mechanisms of geyser occurrence have been previously assumed to originate in inertial oscillations t...

Efforts to improve water quality increasingly rely on structural stormwater best management practices (BMPs) to remove pollutants from urban runoff. These structures can unintentionally produce mosquitoes and may play a role in the spread of mosquito-borne diseases. A questionnaire was distributed to over 300 stormwater and mosquito control agencies in the United States to assess the prevalence...

This study examined the effectiveness of open-joint inter-locking pavers in a permeable pavement in cold (winter) conditions. A field-scale inter-locking paver cell (UNI Eco-Optiloc) was built to evaluate the hydraulic performance and water quality improvements experienced during freeze-thaw and frozen conditions in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Hydraulic performance was assessed using stormwater r...

Aluminum-based water treatment residual (WTR)-coated wood mulches were synthesized and tested for removal of heavy metals and phosphorus (P) in synthetic urban stormwater. WTRs are an industrial waste produced from coagulation in water treatment facilities, primarily composed of amorphous aluminum or iron hydroxides. Batch tests showed that the composite filter media could effectively adsorb 97...

Mercury (Hg) is still a focus of environmental research, since its levels in fish frequently exceed the Environmental Quality Standard (EQS) of 20 μg/kg for biota defined by the European Water Framework Directive (Directive 2008/105/EC). Current Hg levels in Abramis brama from German rivers are in the range of 73–346 μg/kg wet weight (2009) and exceed the EQS by a factor of 3.7–17.3. Therefore,...

A bioretention unit is a simple, plant- and soil-based, low-impact treatment and infiltration facility for treating stormwater runoff in developed areas. Nitrate, however, is not attenuated in conventional bioretention facilities. Thus, this study systematically evaluated a reengineered concept of bioretention for nitrate removal via microbial denitrification, which incorporates a continuously ...

Innovative Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) systems are being investigated at three locations to the north and south of Sydney, Australia. These systems contain porous concrete pipes that are designed so that stormwater exfiltrates through the permeable walls of the pipes into the surrounding substrate media material. The porous pipes and media material treat the passing stormwater. The prim...

Urban water services in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) are currently provided through conventional centralised systems, involving large scale water distribution, wastewater collection, water and wastewater treatment. A study was conducted to assist Environment ACT in setting broad policies for future water services in Canberra. This paper presents the outcomes of a study examining the e...