Stormwater Featured Articles

41. As Climate Change Amplifies Urban Flooding, Here's How Communities Can Become 'Sponge Cities' 5/9/2024
    Across the continental U.S., intense single-day precipitation events are growing more frequent, fueled by warming air that can hold increasing levels of moisture. Most recently, areas north of Houston received 12–20" of rain in several days in early May 2024, leading to swamped roads and evacuations. Events like these have sparked interest in so-called sponge cities — a comprehensive approach to urban flood mitigation that uses innovative landscape and drainage designs to reduce and slow down runoff, while allowing certain parts of the city to flood safely during extreme weather.
42. What Cities Everywhere Can Learn From The Houston Area's Severe Flooding As They Try To Adapt To Climate Change 5/5/2024

    Floods are complex events, and they are about more than just heavy rain. Each community has its own unique geography and climate that can exacerbate flooding. On top of those risks, extreme downpours are becoming more common as global temperatures rise.

43. The Zen Of Stormwater Management And Land Development 5/2/2024
    Plans for land development should include a plan for stormwater as well, incorporating both natural and engineered solutions.
44. Integrating Artificial Intelligence With Machine Learning Deluge Tool 4/18/2024

    With climate change exacerbating extreme weather events and shifting hydrologic models, our traditional drainage systems have failed us repeatedly. It’s evident that engineers, designers, water modelers and the like need to advance the way that we design drainage systems.

45. What's The Difference Between 1D And 2D Hydraulic Modeling? 4/18/2024

    In this article, take a look at what 1D and 2D hydraulic modeling is, the pros and cons of each, and move through a sample workflow of how to decide between them.

46. The City Of Fayetteville's Flood Resiliency In The Face Of Climate Change: Mapping 15 Watersheds 4/9/2024

    The city of Fayetteville, North Carolina has always had flooding issues, but it’s been getting worse as weather patterns have been changing. They were hit four years in a row by storms Matthew (2016), Irma (2017), Florence (2018), and Dorian (2019). 

47. How Engineers Can Help Prevent Catastrophic Flooding 4/8/2024

    Severe weather events are some of the largest looming threats to civilization in the next many decades. The power of water is humbling, something that anyone who has ever been through a flood knows well. Floods can wreak havoc on urban communities, destroying homes, but also destroy environments, damaging wetlands and natural habitats.

48. Putting The Squeeze In Sponge Cities: Amsterdam's Waternet And The Innovative RESILIO Blue-Green Roof Project 4/8/2024

    The RESILIO project has helped Amsterdam repurpose rooftops as smart blue-green roofs to reuse rainwater and prevent localized flooding. This project, along with other sustainable water initiatives like the Amsterdam Rainproof program, continues to position the Netherlands at the forefront of water management.

49. What Is The Impact Of Climate Change On Stormwater Modeling, And How Can Water Professionals Prepare? 4/8/2024

    As the world’s climate continues to shift, the effects of extreme weather events are beginning to cascade through the modern civilized world. While topical discussions of the impacts of climate change often focus on significant natural disasters, there are other more gradual impacts to the way the world works that this shifting climate brings.

50. Reducing Flood Risk In A Highly Urbanized Area 3/7/2024
    How the city of Aurora, CO, via the Fitzsimmons-Peoria Stormwater Outfall Project, modernized outdated infrastructure in response to current needs and future threats.