IGF::OT::IGF THIS PROJECT WILL STUDY GI AS A WAY TO REDUCE STORMWATER RUNOFF AND IMPROVE WATER QUALITY IN U…

Public award description

IGF::OT::IGF THIS PROJECT WILL STUDY GI AS A WAY TO REDUCE STORMWATER RUNOFF AND IMPROVE WATER QUALITY IN URBAN AREAS OF PUERTO RICO. AT ITS CORE, GI SEEKS TO CAPTURE AND TREAT STORMWATER AT ITS SOURCE (A PRINCIPLE OF LID - LOW IMPACT DEVELOPMENT) THROUGH THE USE OF GREEN PRACTICES (E.G., BIORETENTION AND RAIN GARDENS, GRASSED SWALES AND FILTER STRIPS) AS OPPOSED TO TRADITIONAL GREY INFRASTRUCTURE AS EXEMPLIFIED BY THE USE OF CURB AND GUTTERS DELIVERING RUNOFF TO STORMWATER CONVEYANCE FOR RAPID DISCHARGE TO RECEIVING WATERS. PUERTO RICO HAS NUMEROUS WATER QUALITY PROBLEMS AS THERE ARE MANY COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE ISLAND THAT HAVE INADEQUATE STORM SEWER SYSTEMS WHICH CAUSES FLOODING AS WELL AS SURCHARGING OF SANITARY SEWERS, LEADING TO SANITARY SEWER OVERFLOWS (SSO). THIS RESEARCH AND DEMONSTRATION IS ALSO NEEDED AS THE CLIMATE OF PUERTO RICO MAY BRING UNFORESEEN CHALLENGES TO GI DESIGN AS THERE ARE LARGE PRECIPITATION EVENTS AND WARM WATERS YEAR ROUND. THE OVERALL OBJECTIVE OF THIS PROJECT IS TO DESIGN, CONSTRUCT, MONITOR AND EVALUATE, INCLUDING MAINTENANCE PRACTICES, A GI PRACTICE IN AN URBAN PART OF PUERTO RICO, SO THAT THIS TECHNOLOGY CAN BE SUCCESSFULLY ADOPTED ELSEWHERE ON THE ISLAND.