Title: Implementing green infrastructure for stormwater management and combined sewer overflow control

Authors: Lucas Niehuns Antunes; Arthur Rafael Medeiros de Araújo; Manuella Fagundes Bet; Sara Coimbra da Silva; João Vitor Erlacher de Figueiredo; Betina Frigotto de Lima; Tabita Sonntag Manzoni; Layane Christine Vieira

Addresses: Department of Civil Engineering, Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis-SC, 88040-900, Brazil ' Department of Civil Engineering, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal-RN, 59078-970, Brazil ' Department of Architecture and Urbanism, Federal University of Technology – Paraná, Curitiba-PR, 81020-490, Brazil ' Department of Civil Engineering, Federal University of Technology – Paraná, Campo Mourão-PR, 87301-899, Brazil ' Department of Architecture and Urbanism, Federal University of Espírito Santo, Vitória-ES, 29075-910, Brazil ' Department of Architecture and Urbanism, University of the Valley of Itajaí, Itajaí-SC, 88302-901, Brazil ' Department of Architecture and Urbanism, Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus-AM, 69010-120, Brazil ' University of Brasília, Department of Architecture and Urbanism, Brasília-DF, 70904-970, Brazil

Abstract: Green infrastructure has been used in many countries as a source control measure of stormwater runoff. Chicago is one of the many cities that have a combined sewer system and frequently faces overflows. This study proposes a stormwater management system along Chicago's riverfront. The area of green infrastructure to be studied (77,300 m²) is composed of wetland, pond and permeable pavement and was designed to collect, store, treat and discharge or reuse 23,620,000 litres of water. A 49.1% reduction in runoff has been determined for the wetland/pond system compared to the current scenario. The permeable pavement, in turn, infiltrated and stored on average, 325,000 litres of stormwater daily. The stormwater collected from the pavement would be used for non-potable purposes, providing potable water savings up to 6.5%, and serving more than 13,000 people of the neighbourhood. The findings highlight the great potential of green infrastructure to improve stormwater management.

Keywords: green infrastructure; wetland; pond; permeable pavement; stormwater management; combined sewer overflow; CSO.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESD.2023.127424

International Journal of Environment and Sustainable Development, 2023 Vol.22 No.1, pp.32 - 50

Received: 23 Sep 2020
Accepted: 29 Apr 2021
Published online: 05 Dec 2022 *