by Brianna Crandall — February 14, 2014—The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently released phase II of its National Stormwater Calculator and Climate Assessment Tool package, which is helpful for anyone interested in reducing stormwater runoff from a property through various types of green infrastructure, for environmental and compliance reasons. The updated calculator includes future climate vulnerability scenarios.
Users enter any U.S. location, supply information about the site’s land cover, and select different scenarios to learn how specific green infrastructure changes can reduce stormwater runoff.
(Click on image to enlarge)
The calculator, a part of President Obama’s Climate Change Action Plan, is a desktop application that estimates the annual amount of stormwater runoff from a specific location anywhere in the United States (including Puerto Rico). Estimates are based on local soil conditions, land cover, and historic rainfall records. The calculator now includes changes in seasonal precipitation levels, the effects of more frequent high-intensity storms, and changes in evaporation rates based on validated future climate change scenarios by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Facilities owners and managers, site developers, landscaping professionals and others can enter any U.S. location, supply information about the site’s land cover, and select different scenarios to learn how specific green infrastructure changes, including inexpensive changes such as rain barrels and rain gardens, can reduce stormwater runoff. According to the EPA, adding green infrastructure, which mimics natural processes, can be one of the most cost-effective ways to reduce stormwater runoff. Green infrastructure promotes the natural movement of water, instead of allowing it to wash into streets and down storm drains.
To obtain information on various stormwater control scenarios, the user selects the types of low impact development (LID) controls they would like to explore from the following green infrastructure practices:
- Disconnection
- Rain harvesting
- Rain gardens
- Green roofs
- Street planters
- Infiltration basins
- Porous pavement
Users are encouraged to check with local authorities about whether and how the use of these tools may support local stormwater management goals and requirements.
As the EPA explains, every year billions of gallons of raw sewage, trash, household chemicals, and urban runoff flow into streams, rivers and lakes. Polluted stormwater runoff can adversely affect plants, animals, and people as well as the economy. Green infrastructure can reduce the damage caused by climate change by improving water quality in streams and rivers and protecting groundwater sources and local water-use activities, thereby supporting sustainable communities.
The EPA’s National Stormwater Calculator and Climate Assessment Tool is promoted in a YouTube video.
The President’s Climate Action Plan includes information on the virtual climate resilience toolkit.
