| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 51.12 |
| Liaison | Matthew Williams |
| Submission Date | June 30, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Florida
OP-27: Rainwater Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Liz
Storn Program Coordinator Office of Sustainability |
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:
Stormwater Management Initiatives:
1) Incorporate Low Impact Development - to improve water quality and prevent additional erosion in the University’s streams, all projects which impact soil must incorporate the use of Low Impact Development (LID) stormwater techniques where physically, economically, and practically possible.
2)UF Clean Water Campaign - Conduct water quality monitoring, pollution reduction strategies, storm drain marking, and more. Please visit: http://soils.ifas.ufl.edu/campuswaterquality/
3) All new construction at UF is required to be certified at the LEED Gold level. As part of the LEED rating system, projects are encouraged to incorporate LID or other landscape methods to reduce or eliminate the impact of additional impervious surfaces on stormwater runoff.
Several new buildings, including the Chemical Engineering Student Center, the Harn Museum and the Small Animal Hospital all included LID features
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:
On-site retention and detention facilities for stormwater runoff shall be designed as natural landscape features and integrated into the overall site design to create natural open spaces and wildlife habitat. The majority of campus discharges to Lake Alice, which provides both water quality treatment and peak discharge control. The remaining areas are required to detain the 25- year storm to the pre-developed conditions and to analyze both the 25-year and 100-year storms. Water quality treatment in the remaining areas is based on the volume of initial storm times the impervious area.
A brief description of any rainwater harvesting employed by the institution:
At least one building on campus uses harvested rainwater for irrigation of the green roof. The majority of the runoff from that building is harvested – stored in two 1,550 gallon cisterns and used for the drip irrigation system for the roof plantings. When rainfall is scarce during the extremely dry months of the year and the stored water is depleted, irrigation water is available from the University’s reclaimed water supply. As such, this design is a model of water conservation efficiency since no potable water is utilized.
UF uses reclaimed water irrigation for 98% of its irrigation. the reclaimed water is from university's 3MGD wastewater treatment plan. Every day over 2 million gallons of effluent is generated, 1M gallons used for irrigation on campus, and the other effluent is used for FL aquifer recharge.
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 majority of campus discharges to Lake Alice, which provides both water quality treatment and peak discharge control. Additionally, new construction is encouraged to treat and detain stormwater on-site.
A brief description of any living or vegetated roofs on campus:
A green roof measuring 2,600 square feet, with a soil depth of 5 inches was constructed on the Charles R. Perry Construction Yard. Designed by landscape architect Glenn Acomb in conjunction with Soil and Water Science professor Mark Clark and doctoral student Sylvia Lang, the roof will help manage stormwater runoff and will reduce demand on the stormwater system.
A brief description of any porous (i.e. permeable) paving employed by the institution:
Pervious concrete and pervious asphalt has been installed at some campus locations. It has been proposed to be included in University construction standards for future projects where possible. Two examples are a walking path made of pervious paving and a parking lot containing pervious pavers.
A brief description of any downspout disconnection employed by the institution:
A brief description of any rain gardens on campus:
One example of a rain garden on campus is at the renovated SW Recreation Center. The facility takes advantage of the topography on the site to create an ephemeral water feature that brings runoff from the building's roof through a series of runnels that eventually cascade into rain gardens filled with native plants and boulders.
A brief description of any stormwater retention and/or detention ponds employed by the institution:
The majority of the runoff on campus goes to a campus lake, Lake Alice. In addition, there are 13 depression basins on campus that are used for stormwater retention.
A brief description of any bioswales on campus (vegetated, compost or stone):
Vegetated swales are part of the landscape design on campus and part of the university's approach to sustainable sites and implementing LID.
A brief description of any other rainwater management technologies or strategies employed by the institution:
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.