Large-Scale Application of Biofiltration Swale Runoff Management Practices

Abstract

Retaining rainfall where it lands is a fundamental benefit of Low Impact Development (LID). The Delaware Urban Runoff Management Model (DURMM) was developed to address the benefits of LID design. DURMM explicitly addresses the benefits of impervious area disconnection as well as swale flow routing that responds to flow retardance changes. Biofiltration swales are an effective LID BMP for treating urban runoff. By adding check dams, the detention storage provided can also reduce peak rates. This presentation explores how the DURMM runoff reduction approach can be integrated with detention routing procedures to project runoff volume and peak flow reductions provided by BMP facilities. This approach has been applied to a 1,200 unit project on 360 hectares located in Delaware, USA. Over 5 km of biofiltration swales have been designed, many of which have stone check dams placed every 30 to 35 meters to provide detention storage. The engineering involved in the design of such facilities uses hydrologic modeling based upon TR-20 routines, as adapted by the DURMM model. The hydraulic approach includes routing of flows through the check dams. This presentation summarizes the hydrological network, presents the hydrologic responses, along with selected hydrographs to demonstrate the potential of design approach.