| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.74 |
| Liaison | Krista Bailey |
| Submission Date | Oct. 20, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Pennsylvania State University
OP-27: Rainwater Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Shelley
McKeague Environmental Compliance Specialist Engineering Services |
Does the institution use Low Impact Development (LID) practices as a matter of policy or standard practice to reduce rainwater/stormwater runoff volume and improve outgoing water quality for new construction, major renovation, and other projects?:
A brief description of the institution’s Low Impact Development (LID) practices:
The University monitors over two dozen stormwater facilities continuously and makes changes or improvements to them as required. Additionally, the University is always installing new and innovative facilities to reduce the quantity of runoff and improve the quality of runoff from its campuses. Example recent projects can be found on the web at:
http://www.opp.psu.edu/services/stormwater/new-stormwater-projects-at-up
Has the institution adopted a rainwater/stormwater management policy, plan, or strategies that mitigate the rainwater runoff impacts of ongoing campus operations through the use of green infrastructure? :
A brief description of the institution’s rainwater/stormwater management policy, plan, and/or strategies for ongoing campus operations:
Penn State has comprehensive stormwater management strategies. Stormwater requirements are part of the Design and Construction standards. Our stormwater program includes six minimum control measures:
MCM#1 - Public Education and Outreach Program
MCM #2 - Public Involvement and Participation Program
MCM #3 - Illicit Discharge Detection and Elimination Program
MCM #4 - Construction Site Stormwater Runoff Control Standards
MCM #5 - Post Construction Stormwater Management Standards
MCM #6 – Pollution Prevention/Good Housekeeping Program
The MS4 program can be found at: http://www.opp.psu.edu/services/stormwater/ms4
A brief description of any rainwater harvesting employed by the institution:
The Millennium Science Building utilizes rainwater harvesting which includes a cistern for storage and connection to the irrigation system for the landscape plants on the plaza.
The Childcare Center at Hort Woods also collects rainwater, includes a cistern for storage and will be used for toilet flushing. The tank at Hort Woods is 20,000 gallons.
Rainwater harvested directly and stored/used by the institution, performance year:
A brief description of any rainwater filtering systems employed by the institution to treat water prior to release:
The University has several types of water quality inlets to remove specific pollutants from stormwater runoff . At University Park, several types of hydrodynamic storm structures are used. Water quality inlets that require regular replacement of filters are prohibited except in rare circumstances where their need is specifically documented. All of these facilities, in addition to regular inlets and subsurface detention units are on a regular inspection and cleaning schedule. Oil/water separators are also used to remove contaminants from runoff . The University has about a dozen oil/water separators located around campus.
A brief description of any living or vegetated roofs on campus:
The University currently has five buildings with green roofs: the Forestry Building, the vegetable cellar, the Dickinson School of Law, the Health Services Building, and the Millennium Science Complex building.
The Penn State Center for Green Roof Research is located at the University Park Campus in the College of Agricultural Sciences.
A brief description of any porous (i.e. permeable) paving employed by the institution:
The University has had two porous "asphalt" pavement parking lots, both of which did not meet expectations. Porous "asphalt" pavement is now prohibited. The University has several other examples of porous pavement, which are structural soils.
A brief description of any downspout disconnection employed by the institution:
A brief description of any rain gardens on campus:
The University uses Bioretention as a method of treating stormwater by pooling water on the surface and allowing filtering and settling of suspended solids and sediment at the mulch layer, prior to entering the plant/soil/microbe complex media for infiltration and pollutant removal. Rain gardens or bioretention techniques are used to accomplish water quality improvement and water quantity reduction. Many of these systems at University Park are structurally lined so that they do not infiltrate water into the subsoil.
A brief description of any stormwater retention and/or detention ponds employed by the institution:
The University owns over a dozen traditional stormwater management ponds and several ponding areas that simply flood during large runoff events.Most stormwater management ponds at University Park were designed as traditional detention ponds. However, because of the carbonate geology, many of these still infiltrate a significant amount of surface runoff from impervious areas resulting in discharging runoff only from larger rainfall or snow melt events. The University collects 5 minute data continuously from its larger stormwater ponds.
A brief description of any bioswales on campus (vegetated, compost or stone):
The University owns numerous grass lined swales, however, these swales cannot adequately provide long term stability for high flow or slope channels so stone swales are also used on campus.
A brief description of any other rainwater management technologies or strategies employed by the institution:
The University also uses the following as other methods of stormwater management on campus:
-dams
-surface ponds
-subsurface and detention facilities
-infiltration facilities
-wetlands
-storm drains
-water quality inlets
-oil/water separators
-energy dissipators and level spreaders
For details about these other strategies, please see the stormwater magazine: http://www.opp.psu.edu/services/eng-resources/Stormwater%20Magazine.pdf
The website URL where information about the institution’s rainwater management initiatives, plan or policy is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.