Stormwater Sewerage Masterplan for Flood Control Applied to a University Campus

Abstract

Floods generated by rain cause significant economic and human losses. The campus of the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) has a drainage system that conducts stormwater to two discharge points outside the campus. The system works effectively at the macro-drainage level. However, a very crowded area is deficient at the micro-drainage level, which has registered flooding and the proliferation of vectors that affect people’s health. This work aimed to design a masterplan for stormwater sewerage by analyzing the existing situation and applying technical criteria that allow the establishment of solutions and strategies to control floods at the university campus. The methodology consisted of: (i) data collection and processing for the stormwater drainage system diagnosis; (ii) a design proposal for micro-drainage and (iii) a SWOT analysis to propose improvement strategies in water management. The resulting flows for return periods of 5 years, 10 years, and 25 years are 9.67 m3/s, 11.85 m3/s, and 15.85 m3/s, respectively. In the latter, as the most critical area (presence of flooding), the implementation of a trapezoidal channel 80.20 m long, with a capacity of 1.00 m3/s, for a return period of 25 years was proposed. The stormwater masterplan will contribute to the execution of activities within the campus and prevent accidents and the proliferation of diseases, constituting a water-management model that can be replicated locally, regionally, and internationally.

Simulation and Comprehensive Evaluation of the Multidimensional Environmental Benefits of Sponge Cities

“…Based on the hourly rainfall data retrieved from the National Basic Weather Station Beijing Nanjiao Observatory (54,511) from 2010 to 2019 and considering the classification guideline of recognizing the next rain event if no rainfall has occurred for more than 10 h [55], a total of 631 rainfall events were obtained, and the average number of rainfall events per year in Beijing was chosen as 63.1. Unlike many studies that use the return periods as the grading methods [56,57], this study uses 24-h rainfall for the division. According to the meteorological department's standard classification, rainfall between 0.1 mm to 9.9 mm in 24 h is considered light rain, between 10.0 mm to 24.9 mm is moderate rain, between 25.0 mm to 49.9 mm is heavy rain, and greater than 49.9 mm is a rainstorm.…”

“…The urbanization process is often accompanied by an increase in impervious underlying surfaces such as buildings and roads, which leads to difficult rainfall infiltration and, in severe cases, the formation of urban flooding, which adversely affects the normal functioning of cities as well as the lives of residents Merchán-Sanmartín et al, 2023) [1,2]. At the same time, human activities release a large number of pollutants, which settle and accumulate on the surface and cause serious nonpoint source pollution under the effect of rainfall erosion [3].…”