REDUCE CONTROL CAPTURE STORE OVERFLOW

4. STORE Due to poor draining soils and a highwater table, infiltration of stormwater is limited. For larger storm events, when runoff exceeds the capacity additional water must be stored until the storm subsides or high tide passes, and water can be released. Examples may include retrofitting areas as detention basins, adding linear wet swales, and creating a constructed wetland.

5. OVERFLOW. Last, but perhaps most important, is considering adverse impacts during the worst-case scenario, when storage systems are at capacity and the City storm drain is inundated by high tide. It will be critical to allow water to be released from the campus by overland flow to avoid the inundation of the Lawrence J. Yerdon Visitor Center and other low-lying structures. Examples include integrated overland spillways, bypass structures and pipes, and box culverts.

Green Stormwater Infrastructure Techniques

For each strategy, specific Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) techniques are identified. GSI is a nature-based solution to stormwater management problems often caused by urban runoff. GSI provides benefits such as beautified communities, creation of ecological habitat, and environmental sustainability and resiliency. These techniques can be applied individually or combined to create a hydrologically connected system to better manage runoff at the source and build resiliency across the campus with a web of interconnected solutions. These site specific techniques must also be designed with maintenance in mind. At a practical level, sand, salt, and debris are more prevalent near the paths, roads and parking lots. Designs should include sediment forebays to provide pretreatment and to reduce maintenance burdens by capturing debris in a designated location. Pretreatment and regular maintenance will allow these stormwater systems to perform more effectively. Using a nature-based approach to stormwater management can also be an effective way to incorporate native and historically appropriate plants into the landscape, contributing to the museum’s preservation and education mission.

Icons are incorporated into the Plan to identify the specific type of GSI technique and their proposed locations within the campus. The icons are further color coded to identify which of the five strategies they can be applied to.