Heavy rain in urban areas can actually be welcome relief,
especially after a scorching hot summer season. It naturally washes away dirt
and grime on the streets and structures, and also provides nourishment for the
plants and trees. The problem, however, occurs when these urban areas are not
well-equipped to handle the resulting stormwater.
What is Stormwater?
Stormwater typically comes from water runoffs from lawns,
parking lots, gutters, constructions sites, industrial complexes and more.
Without the proper management structures in place, it could overwhelm the
drainage and sewage systems, inundating the ground level with flood.
The consequent risks do not end there. When left to run
off, stormwater can carry with it pollutants from gardens, sediments, soils,
slough, and other contaminants such as grease disposed from residences,
automobile oil from vehicles, bacteria from animal wastes and deposits from
other airborne pollutants. When these enter streams and rivers through the
sewer systems, the bodies of water then become contaminated and polluted as
well.
Stormwater
Management
Dams, canals and improved drainage systems are just a few
of the examples of effective stormwater management systems. What these do,
essentially, is to direct the runoff to a structure that will collect the
stormwater.
Depending on the set measurement of water level in the
collecting dam, for example, the stormwater runoff will then be filtered to
clear of debris and, possibly, treated of the contaminants and pollutants before
it is slowly released to streams and other bodies of water.
What is essential in this process is the element of
control. With the gradual release of the collected stormwater, the drainage
systems are not overwhelmed and urban flooding is thus mitigated. At the same
time, because of the filtering and treatment processes, the bodies of water are
protected against contamination and pollution.
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