Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2018-2019).

Climate change has significantly altered the historical characteristics of precipitation. Changes in precipitationx000D
characteristics coupled with trends of rapid urbanization can put pressure on existing urban infrastructure.x000D
Untreated sewage often overflows and mixes with runoff when an extreme event occurs. A large amount ofx000D
untreated sewage from cities is thus dumped directly into the river system. This causes adverse socio-economicx000D
and environmental impacts in many cities in Canada. The hydrological strategies to alleviate the overall impactx000D
should include both municipal and participatory management in order to make them successful. This projectx000D
aims to provide natural and plant-based hydrological participatory management solutions which are inherentlyx000D
sustainable and low-cost alternatives to current rainwater management practices. To accomplish this, firstx000D
rainfall data will be analyzed to understand the characteristics of precipitation such as seasonality, magnitude,x000D
frequency, and duration of extreme rainfall. Second, potential stakeholders will be identified and their views onx000D
the management options for mitigation measures will be collected. Third, surplus volume will be estimatedx000D
from stormwater municipality codes. Finally, different low cost and sustainable rainwater managementx000D
alternatives will be selected by using hydrological models in conjunction with stakeholder input. Alternativex000D
management selection will be based on socio-economic and environmental considerations. This project willx000D
benefit, to a significant degree, Orbit Engineering in designing economic and sustainable participatoryx000D
rainwater management projects for urban areas. This will result in a reduction of construction material andx000D
energy use, and sustainable land use. Moreover, the proposed project will provide a significant contribution tox000D
the science of participatory rainwater management since it focuses directly on the efficiency and sustainabilityx000D
of on-site rainwater management through participatory modeling that has not been explored at all to date. Thex000D
project will provide an alternative to costly upgrades of drainage infrastructure and help reduce excessivex000D
untreated drainage volume from urban areas in Canada.