Title
A Graphical Approach to Analysis of Individual GSI Project Stormwater Mitigation in Urban Settings
Document Type
Other
Date of this Version
2017
Abstract
Within the field of Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI), a generalized, data-driven, quantitative approach into analyzing the stormwater mitigation efficiency of individual GSI projects with regard to their cost has not yet been published. Previous attempts have been made to determine the costs and benefits of using green infrastructure in certain municipalities, but these analyses quantify multiple aspects of green infrastructure, not just stormwater mitigation, and their conclusions are often specific to that municipality. To produce this missing component, a data table was created to break down the technical characteristics of interest for GSI projects and a graphing approach was used to compare the GSI projects to each other with the hopes of being able to make conclusions regarding the efficiency of certain projects at mitigating stormwater. Two types of linear-linear scale graphs were constructed: stormwater mitigation capacity vs. cost, and stormwater mitigation capacity vs. area of BMP. The goal of the stormwater mitigation capacity vs. cost graph is to determine which GSI projects are better at mitigating stormwater for their cost. This would prove useful for developers who desire to meet certain stormwater goals and want to have an understanding of how GSI project cost can vary, and why. The goal of the stormwater mitigation capacity vs. area of BMP graph is to determine whether GSI projects with deeper substrates or better technology are more efficient at mitigating stormwater despite having a smaller footprint, irrespective of cost. This would be useful for understanding how the stormwater mitigation efficacy of smaller, but higher quality projects varies compared to projects with a larger footprint, and would be of particular interest to those who desire to meet certain stormwater goals but have space constraints. Both graph types demonstrate clear variation between different GSI projects and their efficiency. Their relationships to each other coincide well with the respective GSI projects’ intent and physical characteristics.
Date Posted: 12 January 2018