Renewing Urban Streams with Recycled Water for Streamflow Augmentation: Hydrologic, Water Quality, and Ecosystem Services Management

Bischel, Heather N.; Lawrence, Jennifer; Halaburka, Brian J.; Plumlee, Megan H.; Bawazir, A. Salim; King, James P.; McCray, John E.; Resh, Vincent H.; Luthy, Richard G.

doi:10.1089/ees.2012.0201

Cited by 46 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 216 publications

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“…These describe how water resources are managed and include various scenarios, including the event of environmental catastrophe, such as severe fire, earthquakes, tsunamis and dam failure. Water utilities in this region are hesitant to invest in recycled water projects for streamflow augmentation in part because the outcomes are considered to be uncertain (Plumlee et al 2012, Halaburka et al 2013, Bischel et al 2013. However, water in this region is becoming ever scarcer with growing population and climate change (Jenkins et al 2004, Vicuna andDracup 2007), and recycled water offers a largely untapped potential additional source.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recycled water that is tertiary-treated and intended for beneficial re-use is an often overlooked resource for enhancement of low flows in urban streams (Plumlee et al 2012, Halaburka et al 2013, Bischel et al 2013. However, use of this water presents a series of challenges that should be considered for its effective application as augmented flows.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Recycled water for augmenting urban streams in mediterranean-climate regions: a potential approach for riparian ecosystem enhancement

Lawrence

Pavia

Kaing

et al. 2014

Hydrological Sciences Journal

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The scarcity of water in mediterranean-climate regions makes flow management in the rehabilitation of urban streams problematic. To explore potential applications of using recycled water for stream enhancement, we examine streams in the San Francisco Bay Area of California, USA, to characterize: (a) historic flow regimes at the regional scale, (b) potential unintended ecological effects and (c) specific issues related to recycled water. We analysed historic flow regimes in five basins, performed a streamflow augmentation experiment and monitored benthic macroinvertebrates above and below a recycled-water discharge. Streamflow augmentation with recycled water can provide improved aesthetics and aquatic habitat, but there are caveats to consider. Implications of inputs of recycled water in streams, whether direct or indirect, require detailed analysis of trade-offs. Augmentation is unlikely to harm the ecology of urban streams that are now just barely flowing perennially with pools of stagnant, contaminated water, and it may reduce public health problems from mosquitoes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recycled water for augmenting urban streams in mediterranean-climate regions: a potential approach for riparian ecosystem enhancement

Lawrence

Pavia

Kaing

et al. 2014

Hydrological Sciences Journal

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“…To restore the ecology and aesthetics of urban streams, municipal wastewater effluent and urban runoff should be envisioned as resources, rather than wastes (Bischel et al, 2013). However, contaminants in these water sources have potential to affect drinking-water supplies and degrade aquatic life.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, transformations of redox-active chemicals occur in the HZ, which are partly facilitated by the suitable conditions that an intact HZ provides (Boano et al, 2010a). When relatively long residence times occur in HZs (e.g., hours to days), significant attenuation of contaminants and buffering of water temperature can occur, which can be considered a valuable ecosystem-service benefit associated with their management and preservation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Concerns about aquifer contamination through the HZ arising after the detection of perfluorochemicals prevented a planned water reuse project in Coyote Creek, California (Table 1). However, some aquifers underlying urban areas are already contaminated from legacy impacts, and downwelling of highly treated recycled water may actually improve waterquality conditions (Bischel et al, 2013).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Hyporheic Zone in Urban Streams: A Review and Opportunities for Enhancing Water Quality and Improving Aquatic Habitat by Active Management

Lawrence

Skold

Hussain

et al. 2013

Environmental Engineering Science

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Tremendous opportunities exist for enhancing water quality and improving aquatic habitat by actively managing urban water infrastructure to operate in conjunction with natural systems. The hyporheic zone (HZ) of streams, which is the area of active mixing between surface water and groundwater, is one such system that is overlooked by many water professionals, because the state of the science on this topic has not been transferred into practice. As a biogeochemically active zone, the HZ offers great potential to provide natural treatment of organic compounds, nutrients, and pathogens in urban streams, which are often strongly impacted by flow modifications and water pollution. Reliable treatment is most likely in streams in which the majority of flow occurs through the HZ, the flow is aerated, and sufficient residence times occur, which may be limited to specific channel morphologies and seasons. Integration of the HZ into stream management plans could also provide quality habitat in a landscape with increasingly depauperate biodiversity. Here, we review current knowledge on hydrological, chemical, and biological aspects of the HZ, with a focus on urban settings, and include a set of examples drawn from the literature of low-flow, effluent-dominated streams in which there is significant hyporheic flow and potential for contaminant attenuation. The HZ can be incorporated much more effectively into urban water management, including stream restoration efforts, by understanding the surface and subsurface features conducive to HZ flow and the water-quality and biodiversity improvements that can be gained in the HZ without posing unreasonable risk. The main barriers to implementation of HZ considerations include lack of information, absence of established metrics for evaluating success, small number of controlled HZ experiments in urban settings, and concern over risks to both public health and aquatic organisms. A combination of field studies, laboratory experiments, and model development that consider hydrological, chemical, and biological interactions in the HZ can overcome these barriers.

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Urban stream temperature patterns: Spatial and temporal heterogeneity in the Philadelphia region, Pennsylvania, USA

Beganskas

Toran

2021

Hydrological Processes

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Stream temperature is a critical water quality parameter that is not fully understood, particularly in urban areas. This study explores drivers contributing to stream temperature variability within an urban system, at 21 sites within the Philadelphia region, Pennsylvania, USA. A comprehensive set of temperature metrics were evaluated, including temperature sensitivity, daily maximum temperatures, time >20 C, and temperature surges during storms. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) were the strongest driver of downstream temperature variability along 32 km in Wissahickon Creek. WWTP effluent temperature controlled local (1-3 km downstream) temperatures year-round, but the impacts varied seasonally: during winter, local warming of 2-7 C was consistently observed, while local cooling up to 1 C occurred during summer. Summer cooling and winter warming were detected up to 12 km downstream of a WWTP. Comparing effects from different WWTPs provided guidelines for mitigating their thermal impact; WWTPs that discharged into larger streams, had cooler effluent, or had lower discharge had less effect on stream temperatures. Comparing thermal regimes in four urban headwater streams, sites with more local riparian canopy had cooler maximum temperatures by up to 1.5 C, had lower temperature sensitivity, and spent less time at high temperatures, although mean temperatures were unaffected. Watershed-scale impervious area was associated with increased surge frequency and magnitude at headwater sites, but most storms did not result in a surge and most surges had a low magnitude. These results suggest that maintaining or restoring riparian canopy in urban settings will have a larger impact on stream temperatures than stormwater management that treats impervious area. Mitigation efforts may be most impactful at urban headwater sites, which are particularly vulnerable to stream temperature disruptions. It is vital that stream temperature impacts are considered when planning stormwater management or stream restoration projects, and the appropriate metrics need to be considered when assessing impacts.

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Renewing Urban Streams with Recycled Water for Streamflow Augmentation: Hydrologic, Water Quality, and Ecosystem Services Management

Cited by 46 publications

References 216 publications

Recycled water for augmenting urban streams in mediterranean-climate regions: a potential approach for riparian ecosystem enhancement

Recycled water for augmenting urban streams in mediterranean-climate regions: a potential approach for riparian ecosystem enhancement

Hyporheic Zone in Urban Streams: A Review and Opportunities for Enhancing Water Quality and Improving Aquatic Habitat by Active Management

Urban stream temperature patterns: Spatial and temporal heterogeneity in the Philadelphia region, Pennsylvania, USA

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