Research Areas > Stormwater > Runoff Characterization > Stormwater Dynamics

Project Group: Stormwater Dynamics

SCCWRP Research

Stormwater runoff from urban and suburban land surfaces has been documented as a major source of a variety of pollutants, including solids, metals, nutrients, organics, and bacteria. These pollutants can affect water quality in streams, estuaries, and the coastal ocean. Understanding patterns and mechanisms of stormwater pollutant loading is essential, to allow managers to develop the most effective monitoring and assessment plans, and the most efficient treatment strategies. Routine compliance monitoring provides an understanding of the status and trends in storm water pollutant levels; however, more intensive investigations are needed to develop process-based information which supports watershed models and management plans.

SCCWRP research provides insight into pollutant sources (e.g., runoff from land surface, atmospheric deposition), loading patterns (e.g., first flush, seasonal differences), and mechanisms of pollutant transport and delivery to receiving waters. Current research is focused on investigating three areas of stormwater dynamics:

• Dynamics and Partitioning of Stormwater Particles
• Time Variable Stormwater Pollutant Runoff from Watersheds and Land Uses
• Effects of Fires on Runoff