| By :
Adrianna Noton
With storms come lots of rains which can pose a lot of environmental problems. For regions with good vegetation, the ground is capable of absorbing a large part of the rains. However, hard surfaces like roads and tiled or concrete grounds are not absorbent so there ends up being an overflow or a runoff. Excess runoff causes flood. With the help of storm water management, flooding situations can be properly managed so there is reduced environmental damage. Apart from excess rains, another cause of overflow which adds to floods is melted snow. Also, the more roads and concrete floors are built, the lesser the vegetation and ground areas that can absorb the rains. The consequence is increased flooding occurrences. This is more prevalent in the urban areas where industrialization is more visible. Drains are usually built to help channel excess rains underground. They move through channels that eventually lead them to rivers. Unfortunately, floods carry along a lot of pollutants into the rivers. Human activity produces pollutants like garbage, gasoline and diesel. Chemical pollutants such as pesticides and detergents are other forms of pollutants. These items can contaminate pipe borne supply when allowed to go into the rivers. Managing of runoff is a very important aspect of urban industrialization. As engineers build new housing structures and construct new roads and tunnels, it is vital to consider ways to deal with flooding problems. Control measures must also be put in place to reduce pollution. Pipe borne supply is another issue to address in developed cities. With the ever increasing population, most cities rely on excess rainwater for domestic use. Runoffs are recycled and purified to serve as pipe borne supply. There is therefore need to prevent any form of pollution that could occur. The Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, is the body responsible for managing runoffs in the United States. They have been in existence since the 1970s. They have computerized models for effectively dealing with runoff problems. The EPA uses flood Best Management Practice, also known as BMP, to take care of excess runoff pollution problems. They use various control measures to reduce the pollution in floods before they are absorbed into the ground. Another approach is to put measures in place to prevent pollution from occurring at all. Some of these measures include planting of rain gardens close to drains. The garden plants aid in reducing pollution by absorbing some amount of the runoff. Plants that do not require fertilizer are best for this purpose as excessive use of fertilizers is another cause of pollution. Substituting permeable pavements for concrete ones is another way of managing rain overflows. They absorb rainwater through their porous surfaces. The absorbed rainwater is then temporarily stored in a stone reservoir until the soil beneath is able to absorb it completely. Another method of flood BMP is the building of river basins. River basins are artificial lakes that are built near rivers. They accumulate excess rain overflows so as to avoid flooding situations. The vegetation surrounding these artificial lakes helps to absorb some of the overflow. The importance of storm water management in the reduction of flooding cannot be overemphasized. With it, pipe borne supply is greatly improved. Surrounding environments are also kept safe from the hazards of pollution. This means of managing floods produces the right ecological equilibrium for rivers, streams and habitable areas.
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