UWM Researches Urban Solutions For Stormwater Runoff Control
MILWAUKEE — The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) campus has been the test site for an interdisciplinary study of storm water runoff control in an urban setting. Results so far indicate that the campus is too much “stone” and not enough “sponge.”
Impervious surfaces like parking lots, flat roofs and walkways need to be more porous areas. And those conclusions will likely be the same throughout the city, says James Wasley, associate professor of architecture and principal investigator for the project.
Storm water that quickly drains off of hard surfaces such as pavement can overload the sewerage system and flood low-lying areas. Called “runoff,” it is contaminated with oil and gas from roadways, and fertilizer, pesticide and pet waste from lawns. And because Milwaukee has a combined storm and sanitary sewer system, storm water overflows are often contaminated by human wastes as well, making it a major source of pollution in Lake Michigan and area rivers.
Hard surfaces increase the speed of storm water rushing into streams and sewers. And, according to an assessment by Wasley’s students, more than half of the campus’ 5 million square feet (not including Downer Woods) consists of impervious surfaces.
Partnering with the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD), Wasley has enlisted projects from several UWM departments as elements in a storm water “master plan” for the campus.
The goal is two-fold, he says: To slow the pace and the amount of the runoff draining off the campus and ending up in sewers and waterways, during large storm events. In the process, Wasley hopes to turn UWM into a laboratory for storm water management research and education.
“We want to educate the public about this, while examining practical solutions, such as new forms of porous paving, locations for green roofs, and rain gardens or mini-wetlands,” Wasley says. “We’re asking hypothetical questions, as well as specific ones. Ideas we generate can then be applied to other urban areas where storm water is a problem.”
MMSD would like to identify the best solutions for curbing runoff during heavy rains, but Wasley says the master plan, which will be completed by the end of January, goes far beyond that goal.
How much storm water could potentially be sequestered? “We want to at least hold as much water as if the campus were a deep-rooted prairie,” Wasley says. “That kind of vegetation can retain water through the hot and dry Midwestern summers.”
Already, students and faculty working on the issue have:
- Completed an assessment, measuring rates of runoff, pollutant loads, existing topography and underground infrastructures.
- Established runoff reduction goals for areas of campus.
- Produced a runoff management model that will measure how effective individual solutions are.
- Identified places for green roofs and downspouts disconnections.
They have designed parking lot solutions and applied them to UWM Parking Lot 18, which lies between Merrill Hall and the Physical Plant. The plan transforms 3.2 acres of hard surfaces to meet the “zero-discharge” goal, and can be implemented with a loss of only five or six parking spaces.
The vision is to develop a strong north-south pedestrian corridor from the Klotsche Center’s new pavilion entrance to Hartford Avenue. This path would follow the flow of water from the top of the hill to the bottom, with a series of storm water fountains and rain gardens capturing water from the roofs of seven buildings as well as the sidewalks and parking lots and taking it to a central rain garden basin adjacent to the power plant.
The design also calls for a “storm water teaching plot” located between the Norris Health Center and the Klotsche gym that will be used by the Biological Sciences and others. These controlled research spaces will be served by above ground cisterns capturing water from Klotche’s roof, and will recreate various soils and ecologies typical of Wisconsin. Students will be able to conduct research to determine the effectiveness of these ecological storm water strategies in both reducing runoff speed and in cleaning the water.
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