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Stream and Wetlands Ecosystem Restoration Techniques |
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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 07 November 2009 22:22 |
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This holistic, ecosystem restoration approach attempts to address problems with stormwater, the quantity of surface water and the quality of water, in general. These techniques raise groundwater, create wetlands, and reconnect to the floodplain largely by downsizing the channel to accommodate only the base flow. They also detain large volumes of water on the landscape.
Our proprietary Stream and Wetland Ecosystem Restoration Techniques invert the conventional wisdom of stream restoration, where channels are often designed to carry the 1.5 year storm, and therefore disconnect streams from their floodplains. Often, these traditional methods have only served to exacerbate problems with stormwater runoff into our creeks, streams, rivers, and the Bay. Our methods reverse this trend. |
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Last Updated on Saturday, 07 November 2009 22:28 |
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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 07 November 2009 22:26 |
- Significant cost savings over conventional design and implementation.
- Reduces design, permitting and construction time.
- Reduces project footprint and minimizes disturbance.
- Reverses degradation of receiving waterway.
- Re-establishes the natural ecosystem.
- Re-connects the floodplain.
- Creates non-tidal wetlands.
- Creates high value plant and wildlife habitat.
- Removes non-native plant species.
- Retains existing tree cover.
- Will accrete refractory organics and develop into high quality peatlands in some settings.
- Provides in-situ water quality and quantity treatment.
- Convert stormwater runoff to groundwater, restoring hydrology to both streams & wetlands.
- Allow for human access, and therefore educational opportunities.
- Re-establishes aesthetically pleasing, self-sustaining coastal plain stream valley ecosystems.
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Coastal Plains Outfall / Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance |
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Written by Administrator
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Saturday, 07 November 2009 22:28 |
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 Historically, outfalls from storm drain systems and stormwater management facilities to streams, creeks, rivers, ravines, wetlands, tidewaters and other natural runoff conveyance systems have been designed with a riprap apron at 0% slope to dissipate the erosive condition. Typically, for many reasons, the riprap does not remain in place and erosion undercuts the outfall area. We have developed new techniques that promise to alleviate this problem.
Our Coastal Plains Outfall system utilizes our proprietary riffle weir grade control structures, constructed of native materials, and shallow aquatic beds, underlain with a seam of sand, to convert high energy stormwater flows into cool, clean groundwater, which seeps gently through the structure, essentially restoring spring heads to our stream and wetland ecosystems.
Download Draft Regenerative Stormwater Conveyance (RSC) Specifications PDF |
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Last Updated on Saturday, 07 November 2009 22:44 |
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 08 November 2009 06:54 |
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 Pitcher Plant
(Sarracenia purpurea)
Underwood & Associates together with Meadowview Biological Research Station orchestrated the development of a task force team comprised of regulators and scientists from the private sector to develop guidelines for reintroduction of rare plant species back into the wild.
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Written by Administrator
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Sunday, 08 November 2009 06:51 |
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Atlantic White Cedar
(Chamaecyparis thyoides(L.) BSP)
Arlington Echo is owned and operated by the Anne Arundel County Board of Public Education as an outdoor educational facility. They own as part of that property a part of an Atlantic White Cedar (AWC) wetland containing 88 adult trees and other rare species. This firm has been working with that organization on various projects related to AWC since 1997. We have worked with the Severn River Association and students from numerous public and private schools on projects including propagation, out planting and data collection for Scientist at Rutgers, Old Dominion and Yale Universities.
We helped set up a program for the propagation of indigenous AWC from that site. A greenhouse provides for hands on participation of school children and the parents who visit this site in the restoration of an ecosystem that is quickly disappearing in this state. We have helped restore the cedar swamp to good health, installing rain gardens to infiltrate stormwater and grow out AWC for use in restoration of this site and other sites countywide.
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Methods