Impervious problem, solid solution

摘要

Is inevitable as population growth and its attendant urban sprawl is the disruption of natural drainage patterns. While rising waters may never be halted, flood-control technologies now provide the means to curtail the effects of rampaging rivers and stormwater. A significant factor in flooding problems, concrete also plays an important role in stormwater management. The devastation of the 1981 Memorial Day Flood in Austin, Texas-killing 13 people and wreaking 36 million dollars in damage-led to the development of a watershed-protection master plan. Within the 30-sq.-mile Williamson Creek watershed, a system of tributaries and creeks in Austin's far southeastern district, the most vulnerable area encompassing the greatest number of at-risk houses was found to be the Creek Bend neighborhood. Flash flooding in that vicinity, as reported by Miami-based engineers PBS&J, can increase normal water flow of roughly 200 gallons per minute to as much as 13 million gallons a minute.