Technology Review: Ultra-Urban Stormwater Treatment Technologies

Abstract

This paper provides a review of "ultra-urban" stormwater treatment technologies. "Ultra-urban" technologies are designed to remove pollutants from wet weather runoff in highly developed areas where land values are high and available space is limited. These technologies differ from traditional stormwater treatment methods (e.g., water quality ponds and grass swales) in that they are extremely compact and can be retrofitted into existing stormwater collection systems. The technologies included in this review were developed primarily to remove suspended solids from urban runoff. Several of the units also include design features to remove oils and other floatable contaminants. Generally speaking, these technologies remove metals, nutrients, and other contaminants only to the extent that these contaminants are adsorbed to suspended solids. A notable exception to this is certain filtration systems, which can be operated with an adsorptive media specific to dissolved metals, organics, and nutrients.