Road Runoff Management Using Improved Infiltration Ponds

摘要

The paper presents research focused on the development of the improved infiltration pond that: a) reduce runoff volume, b) keep the required quality of soaking water, c) reduce maintenance needs. The paper presents the construction and hydraulic principles of the infiltration pond that can be applied to manage the runoff from roads and highways. It restores the natural hydrology and improves water quality by reducing the volume and frequency of flows that cause pollution and physical disturbance. Firstly the stormwaters are conveyed by the inlet channel to the settling chamber designed to settle out coarse sediments and floating debris (oil separators can also be mounted depending on the local law requirements). Settling chamber and infiltration chamber are connected by the filtration column filled with sand or other soil material to remove pollutants from the water. Stormwater flows through the porous media and then flow over the weir to the infiltration chamber. The filtration column is designed to cause reverse flow during emptying phase - it allows to rinse the pollutants from filter to settling chamber. Selection of the optimal grain size in the filter to get better efficiency of treatment is currently developed in laboratory tests. A hydrodynamic model of the proposed construction is presented to show its hydraulic efficiency. The presented infiltration basin provides an effective management of runoff generated from roads, highways and from parking lots considering both quantity (reduction of volumes) as well as quantity aspects (reduction of pollutant loads).