Researchers are developing alternative stormwater treatment systems and technologies. In side-by-side comparisons,
the gravel wetland (above) performed well in evaluations of its impact on water quality and quantity.
Stormy Weather, Murky Water?
Stormwater treatment center brings clarity.
Challenge
One of the greatest threats to water quality nationwide begins with a storm. Rain washes over the landscape, picking up pesticides, fertilizer, sediment, oil, road salt, heavy metals, trash, toxic chemicals, and disease-causing microbes. Eventually,
runoff carries this blend of pollutants—known as nonpoint source pollution—into streams, creeks, estuaries, and coastal harbors where it degrades water quality and threatens human health. Phase II of the Clean Water Act mandates communities to address this challenge, yet often they lack the information to make cost-effective decisions about stormwater treatment systems that will protect water quality.
Response
The University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center was established in 2004 to help coastal managers develop stormwater management programs to protect water quality. The center operates an independent field facility that tests stormwater devices and treatment systems in a side-by-side setting. It is the only test bed of its kind in the nation.
The Center’s field site is located next to a nine-acre parking lot in Durham, N.H. The contributing drainage area—almost completely impervious—generates stormwater flows typical of developed urban and suburban subcatchments. The site contains three classes of stormwater treatment systems: manufactured devices; conventional structural designs; and Low Impact Development (LID) designs, all of which have been scaled to address an equal volume of runoff. When rain runs off the lot, it is channeled in equal quantities into each system. The effluent from each system is then tested for quality and quantity.
Impact
Since its inception, the UNH Stormwater Center has become a resource for stormwater managers, researchers, municipalities,
regulators, and device manufacturers. Preliminary research results are shedding light on the impact of commonly used stormwater treatment systems on water quality, providing valuable insight for managers and manufacturers.
The concentration of stormwater treatment systems and devices in one location provides an ideal setting for technology demonstrations and workshops. Best Management Practice (BMP) workshops and outreach activities that were first attended by managers from New Hampshire, are now drawing participants from throughout the Northeast. Researchers are exploring ways to support managers in other regions as well.
Learn More
UNH Stormwater Center
Dr. Robert Roseen, Co-director
University of New Hampshire
603.862.4024
robert.roseen@unh.edu
Dr. Thomas Ballestero, Lead Scientist
University of New Hampshire
603.862.1405
tom.ballestero@unh.edu
Related Projects
UNH Stormwater Center [News Release]
Engineering Bioretention for Treatment of Stormwater Runoff [Progress Report]
Sorptive Clarification as an Environmental Technology to Passively Treat Stormwater from Elevated Transportation Infrastructure [Progress Report]
Development of a Decision Support Model for Compliance with the Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Stormwater Program [Progress Report]
Using Bioretention to Transport and Capture Pathogens from Urban Stormwater Runoff [Progress Report]
Field Demonstration of Wood Filter Technology for Stormwater Treatment [Progress Report]