Thesis (M.Eng.Sc.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, 2000? / Corrigenda pasted onto front end-paper. The CD contains Excel spreadsheets containing data collected. Bibliography: leaves 209-222.

Master of Science / Department of Biological & Agricultural Engineering / Stacy L. Hutchinson / Urban stormwater is one of the leading causes of water quality impairment and stream channel degradation in the United States. In an effort to address the negative effects of stormwater runoff on receiving aquatic systems, Best Management Practices for stormwater, including ecologically-designed stormwater systems, are becoming more common across the urban landscape. Throughout eastern Kansas and the rest of the Midwestern United States, prairie grasses are beginning to receive attention for their potential to enhance infiltration within these systems. However, the function of vegetated stormwater systems and the influence of factors such as vegetation age on infiltration and system performance are not well understood because monitoring data for these systems is limited. When performance data is collected, it often pertains only to the hydraulic and water quality aspects of the system but neglects any assessment of the integrity of the ecosystem functions on which the system's performance is dependent. The objective of this study was to address the need for an assessment tool that considers the ecological integrity, or health, of ecologically-designed stormwater systems, as well as to fill the gap in the literature regarding the function of ecologically-designed stormwater systems in the tallgrass prairie region. Since many of the eco-based stormwater practices in the region rely upon the establishment of native prairie grasses to enhance infiltration on the site, the specific focus of this study was to gain a better understanding of infiltration processes in ecologically-designed systems and the extent of our ability to regain these processes through prairie restoration in previously disturbed urban sites. To address these objectives, two stormwater systems at different stages of vegetative maturity were examined. In general, ecosystem health scores were higher for the more mature system and could be used to guide future management decisions at both sites. Results from the hydraulic analysis indicate the function of the system may improve over the course of the growing season, but statistical relationships between system age and infiltration rate could not be established.

My deepest respect and appreciation are extended to Dr. L. Gray Wilson for providing the opportunity to conduct this research, for his advice and assistance during the course of the research, and for his review of and suggestions for improving this manuscript. I would also like to thank Michael Osborn for his assistance. This research was funded by the City of Tucson. The assistance and direction provided by Mt. Bruce Johnson and Mt. Joe Babcock at Tucson Water are gratefully acknowledged. My thanks are also extended to Dr. Daniel D. Evans, Dr. L.G. Wilson, and Dr. Stanley N. Davis for serving on my thesis committee. Bruce Smith's assistance is gratefully acknowledged. Bruce spent two long days with 110-degree temperatures In a parking lot describing the lithology of sediment samples collected during the drilling phase of this research. He also determined the moisture content and particle size distribution on samples collected from the borehole. The assistance of Ralph Marra and Steve Brooks is also gratefully acknowledged. Ralph waded through city and county bureaucracies to determine zoning at each dry-well site. Steve assisted with collecting dry-well settling chamber sediment samples.

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Microplastic is a widespread pollutant in marine and fresh water systems. A major pathway by which microplastics end up in these systems is via storm water. Storm water is generated as precipitation drain off of impenetrable surfaces like paving. Microplastic analysis of storm water make up a good foundation for better understanding what sources and factors contribute to microplastic pollution in marine and fresh water systems. This study puts emphasis on characterization and quantification of microplastics through visual characterization. As visual characterization is a subjective form of analysis, the characterization was performed based on guidelines in order to minimize the risk of identifying false positives. The concentration of microplastic was found to be higher in the current study than in comparison to larger water bodies and storm water streams in less urban areas. Fragments, i.e. irregular shaped particles with the appearance of being broken from a larger piece of litter, were found to be the most abundant type of microplastics, pointing at littering as a major source of microplastics in storm water.

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Climate model projections revealed a likelihood of increased frequency and magnitude of hydrological extremes in future climate due to continued emissions of greenhouse gases. Considering that it will significantly affect the planning and designing of flood management systems, for instance stormwater management infrastructures, and designation of flood risk area, it is vital to investigate the climate change impact on the hydrological processes and respective consequences on the flood management systems. The primary objective of this research is to investigate the climate change impact at watershed scale, and the goal was achieved by investigating the climate change impact on hydrological processes, assessing the potential impact of changed hydrological processes on drainage systems and flooding scenarios. The study area in this research includes Spencer Creek watershed, West Central Mountain drainage area and Clearview Creek drainage area located in Southern Ontario, Canada. The climate projections used in this study were the North American Regional Climate Change Assessment Program (NARCCAP) climate simulations based on SRES A2 scenario. For Spencer Creek watershed, NARCCAP provided eight RCM+GCM pair’s climate projections were bias- corrected, and used as input in a calibrated hydrological model HBV to simulate flows at the outlet of the watershed. A significant improvement of bias-corrected precipitation and temperature was revealed by Brier and Rank Probability Skill Score. The results revealed an increase in winter daily average flows and decrease in other seasons, and approximately 13% increase in annual evapotranspiration, and an increase in high flows and decrease in low flows under future climate conditions. Consequences for changed hydrological processes on urban stormwater management systems were investigated for West Central Mountain drainage area. Design storm depths were calculated by using the best fitted distribution among twenty seven distributions and by applying delta change factor. The PCSWMM model was used for flow simulation and hydraulic analysis for the storm-water management system, specifically storm sewer and detention pond. The assessment results indicate that the performance of the detention pond as well as the storm sewer network will deteriorate under future climate condition as design storm depths increase. For Clearview Creek drainage area, a single event hydrologic model Visual OTTHYMO and hydraulic analysis tool HEC-RAS were used to simulate flow and water level. The results revealed an increase of peak flows ranging from about 26 % to 64% for 2yr and 100yr return periods at the outlet of the Creek, and an average increase of water surface elevation and extents by 30 cm and 37.1 m, respectively, for a 100 year return period flood. Finally, non-stationary frequency analyses for design storm calculation were recommended for more robust and accurate investigation of climate change impact. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

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