rain gardens at vassar college: a water quality assessment emily vail collins research fellow vassar...
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Rain Gardens at Vassar College: A Water Quality Assessment
Emily VailCollins Research Fellow
Vassar College Environmental Research Institute
Community EducatorEnvironment Program
Cornell Cooperative Extension Dutchess County
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National Research Council, “Stormwater Management in the United States” (2008)
Stormwater and Water Quantity
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Stormwater and Water Quality
• Sediment - erosion, bound to other pollutants
• Nutrients - eutrophication
• Heavy metals - toxicity
• Other contaminants
- Ecological problems in streams (Walsh et al. 2005, Paul & Meyer 2001, Groffman
et al. 2003, National Research Council 2008)
- Water treatment is expensive
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Rain gardens?
NYS DEC, “New York State Stormwater Design Manual” (2008)
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Town House Apartments Site
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Redevelopment - 2008
Rain Garden 2
Rain Garden 1
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Rain Garden 2 Rain Garden 1
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Water samples collected:• Precipitation
• Stormwater runoff
• Soil water
• Catch basins
Analyzed for:
• Total suspended solids (TSS)
• Dissolved inorganic nutrients (N, P)
• Heavy metals (Cu, Pb, Zn)
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Site Map
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Rain Garden Catch Basin Unfiltered Catch Basin
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n = 6, samples from December 2008, March 2009, April 2009, August 2010, and October 2010
Mean TSS in Catch Basins
0
5
10
15
20
25
Rain Garden 2 Rain Garden 1 Unfiltered Catch Basin
Co
nce
ntr
ati
on
(m
g/L
)
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n = 6, samples from December 2008, March 2009, April 2009, August 2010, and October 2010
Mean Dissolved Nutrient Concentrations in Catch Basins
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
Rain Garden 2 Rain Garden 1 Unfiltered Catch Basin
Co
nce
ntr
ati
on
(m
g/L
)
AmmoniumNitratePhosphate
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n = 6, samples from December 2008, March 2009, April 2009, August 2010, and October 2010
Mean Total Heavy Metal Concentrations in Catch Basins
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
Rain Garden 2 Rain Garden 1 Unfiltered Catch Basin
Co
nce
ntr
ati
on
(m
g/L
)
Copper
Lead
Zinc
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Rain Garden 2 inlet Rain Garden 1 inlet
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Mean Total Heavy Metal Concentrations in Catch Basins
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
Rain Garden 2 Rain Garden 1 Unfiltered Catch Basin
Co
nce
ntr
ati
on
(m
g/L
)
Copper
Lead
Zinc
n = 6, samples from December 2008, March 2009, April 2009, August 2010, and October 2010
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Summary• Rain gardens are effective at removing TSS
– Consistent with other studies (Davis 2007, Davis 2009, Bratieres et al. 2008)
• May be net exporters of nutrients (affected by the growing season) – Some studies found that although total N and P
reduced, inorganic nutrients increased (Davis et al. 2009, Davis et al. 2006, US EPA 1999, Davis et al. 2007, Dietz & Clausen 2006, Kim et al. 2003)
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Summary• Do not appear to moderate heavy metal loads
(further studies needed)– Laboratory studies show 88-97% removal of Cd, Cu,
Pb, Zn from synthetic stormwater (Sun & Davis 2006, Davis et al. 2001, Davis et al. 2003)
– Field studies - slightly lower removal rates for metals (Davis 2007)
• Increased retention time for stormwater quantity (Davis et al. 2009, Davis 2007, Hood et al. 2007, Hatt et al. 2009)
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Conclusion• Rain gardens - an important aspect of Low Impact Design• Maintain pre-development hydrology• Local BMPs to address ecosystem-wide problems• Need for assessment• Aesthetics and function
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Next steps• Do rain gardens continue to function the same
way over the duration of a storm event?– Monitoring water quality– Assess flow patterns on site
• What kind of maintenance is required? Is the design functioning as it was intended?– Visual observations and considerations for
maintenance and potential design modifications
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Monitoring water quality for the duration of a storm event
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TSS in Rain Garden 1 Catch Basin on 10/14
y = -0.2302x + 7.2547
R2 = 0.4652
0.00
2.00
4.00
6.00
8.00
10.00
12.00
17:3
1
17:4
6
18:0
1
18:1
6
18:3
1
18:4
6
19:0
1
19:1
6
19:3
1
19:4
6
20:0
1
20:1
6
20:3
1
20:4
6
21:0
1
21:1
6
21:3
1
21:4
6
22:0
1
22:1
6
22:3
1
22:4
6
23:0
1
23:1
6
Time
Con
cen
trati
on
(m
g/L
)
TSS in Rain Garden 1 Catch Basin and Unfiltered Catch Basin on 10/14
0.00
5.00
10.00
15.00
20.00
25.00
30.00
17:3
1
17:4
6
18:0
1
18:1
6
18:3
1
18:4
6
19:0
1
19:1
6
19:3
1
19:4
6
20:0
1
20:1
6
20:3
1
20:4
6
21:0
1
21:1
6
21:3
1
21:4
6
22:0
1
22:1
6
22:3
1
22:4
6
23:0
1
23:1
6
Time
Con
cen
trati
on
(m
g/L
) Rain Garden 1Unfiltered Catch Basin
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Total Heavy Metal Concentration and Water Depth in Rain Garden 1 Catch Basin, 10/14
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
1.4
17:3
1
17:4
6
18:0
1
18:1
6
18:3
1
18:4
6
19:0
1
19:1
6
19:3
1
19:4
6
20:0
1
20:1
6
20:3
1
20:4
6
21:0
1
21:1
6
21:3
1
21:4
6
22:0
1
22:1
6
22:3
1
22:4
6
23:0
1
23:1
6
Time
Heavy M
eta
l C
on
cen
trati
on
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
0.2
0.25
0.3
0.35
0.4
0.45
Wate
r D
ep
th (
m)
Total heavy metalsWater depth
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Water Depth in Rain Garden 1 Catch Basin and Unfiltered Catch Basin and Precipitation on 10/14
0
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.8
Time
Wate
r D
ep
th (
m)
0
0.0005
0.001
0.0015
Pre
cip
itati
on
(m
)
Unfiltered Catch Basin
Rain Garden 1
Precipitation
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Assessing Flow Patterns
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Identifying maintenance concerns
• Visual observation and data collection
• Sediment build-up in inlets
• Water flow through soil• Plant growth• Establishment of weeds
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Acknowledgements
Dr. Lynn Christenson, Dr. Mary Ann Cunningham, Dr. Stuart Belli, Dr. Kirsten Menking, Dr. David Gillikin, Dr. Jill Schneiderman, Dr. Mark Schlessman, Rick Jones, Keri VanCamp, Seth Stickle, Danielle Goldie, Cat Foley,
Sandy Alles, & Will Jobs
Vassar College Environmental Research Institute
Vassar College Environmental Studies Program
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Mean Nutrient Concentrations
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Precipitation Runoff Soil Water Rain Garden CatchBasins
Unfiltered CatchBasin
Con
cen
trati
on
(m
g/L
)
AmmoniumNitratePhosphate
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Mean Heavy Metal Concentrations
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
Precipitation Runoff Soil Water Rain Garden CatchBasins
Unfiltered CatchBasin
Co
nce
ntr
ati
on
(m
g/L
)
CopperLeadZinc