Balancing upland green infrastructure and stream restoration to recover urban stormwater and nitrate load retention

Urban watersheds have experienced ecosystem degradation due to land cover change from vegetation to impervious areas. This transformation results in increased stormwater runoff, stream channel erosion and sedimentation, and both increased inputs and reduced ecosystem retention of nutrients. Ecosystem restoration practices, including terrestrial and aquatic low impact development (LID), are becoming widely implemented in urban watersheds globally. A major question is how green and grey infrastructure can be optimally balanced to shift ecohydrological behavior towards pre-urbanization conditions. Traditional stormwater engineering typically controls runoff by temporary storage (detention) and release of stormwater, while LID designs are developed to reduce runoff by a combination of infiltrating precipitation and evapotranspiration, while promoting biogeochemical retention of nutrients. These practices are often combined with stream and riparian restoration that increases nutrient retention and reduces in-stream loads. In this study, we simulated the potential impact of three types of terrestrial LID and green infrastructure (GI) on watershed runoff and nitrate (NO3-) loading to local streams, independent of detention storage effects. The treatments included increased tree canopy, vegetated roadside bioswales, and permeable pavement. We then evaluated the individual and interactive impacts of these practices on the effectiveness of NO3- load reduction provided by stream restoration, which is affected by the altered runoff and nutrient loading caused by the LID and GI. Urban reforestation provided the highest effectiveness in terms of reducing stormflow and nutrient export, while bioswales and permeable pavement unexpectedly increased in-stream NO3- loads. Retrofit of the previously developed watershed by LID/GI alone may not provide sufficient mitigation in stormwater and nutrient loads, and should be balanced with additional grey infrastructure, such as detention ponds, rain cisterns, and sewer system upgrades.

Automated summary

Urban watersheds can experience ecosystem degradation, but can be restored through terrestrial and aquatic low impact development practices. Finding the optimal balance between green and grey infrastructure is crucial for achieving ecohydrological behavior similar to pre-urbanization conditions. Urban reforestation has been found to be the most effective in reducing stormflow and nutrient export, while bioswales and permeable pavement can unexpectedly increase in-stream nitrate loads.