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WRC Home > Outreach and Public Engagement > Nutrients and Water Quality > Stormwater Management > BMP Assessment

Assessment of Stormwater Best Management Practices

Biologically Enhanced Practices

Biologically enhanced practices use vegetation or biological (e.g., microbial) processes in addition to infiltration, filtration, and/or sedimentation to reduce peak flow, runoff volume, or pollutant concentrations of stormwater runoff. Assessment methods for biologically enhanced practices include visual inspection, capacity testing, synthetic runoff testing, and monitoring. For example, visual inspection of a bioretention practice could determine if the practice is not functional. When visual inspection determines that stormwater BMPs are not functional, repair or replacement must occur before any other assessment is warranted. The Assessment Protocol describes assessment methods for the following biologically enhanced practices:

• Bioretention (rain gardens)

• Wetlands

• Filter Strips

• Swales

Related Protocol Chapter

Chapter 11: Biologically Enhanced Practices

Presentations

Asleson, B., Assessing rain garden effectiveness, 5th National Monitoring Conference, San Jose, CA, May 10, 2006 (pdf file, 2.03 MB)

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