Impact of Soil Compaction on Vegetated Basin Transition: Fid-Bau Portal

Impact of Soil Compaction on Vegetated Basin Transition

Mohammed, Wessam / Welker, Andrea L.

Stormwater control measures (SCMs) are increasingly being used instead of traditional, or grey, infrastructure, to control stormwater runoff and mitigate floods in urbanized areas. Vegetated basins are one type of SCM that uses a depression to control runoff volume and enhance water quality. Infiltration basins are the most common type of Vegetated basins and have substantial vegetation and low depression storage with temporary ponding and high infiltration rates. Wet pond/retention basins or wet ponds are another type with large depression storage with permanent ponding, low infiltration rates, little vegetation, and high evaporation. Dry extended detention basins or dry ponds have high depression storage with temporary ponding, low infiltration rates, and less vegetation. Unfortunately, many contractors are not familiar with best practices for constructing infiltration features and compaction can occur inadvertently during construction. This compaction may transform a basin from one type to another or to a new SCM. To identify the influence of soil compaction on this transition, the infiltration performance of a basin located at the headwaters of the Pennypack Creek in Pennsylvania was monitored and the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) was used to model the basin.