South Carolina resource managers and stormwater engineers require locally relevant quantitative information on the residential stormwater ponds typical of the coastal plain. Stormwater ponds, especially detention ponds, are the most common best management practice (BMP) for controlling runoff in coastal South Carolina. No studies published for coastal South Carolina have successfully constrained the relative roles of surface versus groundwater inputs, though groundwater is a significant component of watershed hydrologic budgets due to the region’s low gradient topography and shallow water table conditions. Researchers will determine the performance of ponds typical to coastal South Carolina with respect to hydrology and their ability to remove or retain nitrogen, phosphorus, sediments, and bacterial pathogens. Research will directly account for the relative roles of both surface water and groundwater flowpaths as sources of material delivery to ponds. The study will be conducted in ponds that vary in the degree of impervious surfaces within their catchment area and in the means by which runoff is routed to the ponds.
Over the course of this study, research will (1) quantify the complete water budget for selected stormwater ponds over the course of a year to understand temporal variability associated with rainfall and water table conditions; (2) quantify concentrations of pollutants in pond outfall and input waters to determine detention pond effectiveness; (3) quantify and compare water budgets and pollutant removal in a pair of ponds that vary in residential development density and a pair of ponds that vary in density of connected impervious surfaces; and (4) incorporate research findings into technical recommendations for regulatory agencies, local stormwater managers, pond management professionals, homeowner associations, and the broader scientific community.
Research Results
Corley, Samantha. Master’s thesis, “Quantifying Water Budgets to Evaluate the Hydrologic Performance of Two Stormwater Detention Ponds in Coastal South Carolina,” 2015, Coastal Carolina University.