The following resources provide additional information about stormwater BMPs and related topics.

Articles & Publications

General Stormwater Info:

Center for Watershed Protection: Publications
These publications are a collection of sources for watershed planners, stormwater managers, engineers, local government officials, and citizen groups. Discusses stormwater management issues such as urban watershed restoration techniques and assessment, watershed protection, and ecologically sound development.

"Critical Components for Successful Planning, Design, Construction and Maintenance of Stormwater Best Management Practices" by Richard A. Claytor, Jr., P.E. (PDF, 1.2MB)
This paper presents a common nomenclature for structural stormwater BMPs with a review of several critical elements that must be addressed to ensure that BMPs meet watershed protection goals.

Facilitating Watershed Management: Fostering Awareness and Stewardship, by Robert L. France, 2005, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Facilitating Watershed Management brings together myriad distinctive voices to create an experiential learning process drawn from the most important innovators in the field. Presenting an introduction to the diversity of tools (sociological, pedagogical, phenomenological) needed to implement watershed management in the real world trenches, the book helps move students and practitioners from being knowledgeable stewards of watersheds to becoming wise managers of watersheds.

The Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO) project: Publications
This website provides various articles, publications, and press releases on urban sprawl, non-point education, and tools for effective management and planning.

"SLC Stormwater Detention Basins Provide Multiple Benefits," Salt Lake City Department of Public Utilities
This article promotes the idea that urban open space and recreational benefits are added benefits of flood control facilities.

Stormwater, The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals
Stormwater is a journal that deals with issues related to stormwater management and treatment. It is specifically tailored toward professionals who deal with surface water quality issues.

US Department of Transportation (USDOT): Water Quality and Stormwater Management Publications
This site lists publications developed by the USDOT related to stormwater BMPs. It also includes a monitoring guide for ultra-urban areas.

Sustainable Stormwater Design:

Conservation Design for Subdivisions: A Practical Guide to Creating Open Space Networks, by Randall G. Arendt, 1996, Island Press
In Conservation Design for Subdivisions, Randall G. Arendt explores better ways of designing new residential developments than we have typically seen in our communities. He presents a practical handbook for residential developers, site designers, local officials, and landowners that explains how to implement new ideas about land-use planning and environmental protection. Abundantly illustrated with site plans (many of them in color), floor plans, photographs, and renditions of houses and landscapes, it describes a series of simple and straightforward techniques that allows for land-conserving development.

"Ecologically Functional Stormwater Basin Retrofits" by Joel P. Thrash
This is an article from Stormwater, The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals, discussing ways to improve stormwater management that also meet NPDES Phase II requirements.

Green Development: Integrating Ecology and Real Estate, by Rocky Mountain Institute, 1998, Wiley
Green Development describes an exciting new field in which environmental considerations are viewed as opportunities to create fundamentally better buildings and communities--more comfortable, more efficient, more appealing, and ultimately more profitable. If you're a developer, architect, planner, contractor, lender, or city official, this book speaks your language. Every stage of the development process is examined in detail: market research, site planning, design, approvals, financing, construction, marketing, and occupancy. Also included are lists of project statistics and contacts, books and other information sources, and development strategies.

Green Infrastructure: Linking Landscapes and Communities, by Mark A. Benedict and Edward T. McMahon, 2006, Island Press
With illustrative and detailed examples drawn from throughout the country, Green Infrastructure advances smart land conservation: large-scale thinking and integrated action to plan, protect and manage our natural and restored lands. From the individual parcel to the multi-state region, Green Infrastructure helps each of us look at the landscape in relation to the many uses it could serve, for nature and people, and determine which use makes the most sense. In this wide-ranging primer, leading experts in the field provide a detailed how-to for planners, designers, landscape architects, and citizen activists.

Growing Greener: Putting Conservation into Local Plans and Ordinances, 1999, Island Press
Growing Greener is an illustrated workbook that presents a new look at designing subdivisions while preserving green space and creating open space networks. Randall Arendt explains how to design residential developments that maximize land conservation without reducing overall building density, thus avoiding the political and legal problems often associated with "down-zoning." The author offers a three-pronged strategy for shaping growth around a community's special natural and cultural features, demonstrating ways of establishing or modifying the municipal comprehensive plan, zoning ordinance, and subdivision ordinance to include a strong conservation focus. Open space protection becomes the central organizing principle for new residential development, and the open space that is protected is laid out to form an interconnected system of protected lands running across a community.

Innovative Design: The Role of the Landscape Architect" by Kathleen Webb Tunney
This is an article from Stormwater, The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals, discussing what landscape architects can bring to stormwater management projects. The article contains useful links to additional resources.

"Integrating Stormwater" by Bill Tice
This is an article from Stormwater, Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals, which introduces the role of landscape architecture and site design in stormwater treatment.

"Interim Code of Practice for Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS)," a CIRIA publication
This publication strives to facilitate the implementation of sustainable drainage in developments in England and Wales by providing model maintenance agreements and technical recommendations.

Practical Ecology for Planners, Developers, and Citizens, by Dan. L. Perlman and Jeffrey Milder, 2004, Island Press
Practical Ecology for Planners, Developers, and Citizens introduces and explains key ecological concepts for planners, landscape architects, developers, and others involved in planning and building human habitats. The book is tailored to meet the needs of busy land use professionals and citizens seeking a concise yet thorough overview of ecology and its applications. It offers clear guidelines and a wealth of information on how we can protect species and ecosystems while at the same creating healthy, sustainable human communities.

“Stormwater Design and Sustainable Development” by Lynn Merrill
This is an article from Stormwater, The Journal for Surface Water Quality Professionals, describing how ‘green building’ practices are starting to become more mainstream.

Conferences, training & workshops

The Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO) project: Workshops
Workshops hosted by NEMO are designed to help local decision makers develop tangible solutions toward protecting their municipality’s resources. These solutions or action plans can be very specific or more policy oriented.

StormCon: The North American Surface Water Quality Conference & Exposition
StormCon is the leading source for NPDES Phase II training in all aspects of stormwater management for municipalities, consultants, highway and heavy construction contractors, developers, regulated industries, and special sites, such as ports and airports.

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS): promoting good practice—a CIRIA initiative: Training and Events
This site focuses on sustainable drainage, a concept that aims to include long term environmental and social factors in decisions about drainage. This site provides upcoming events and training to build on current SUDS guidance and to implement good practice. The programs will train practitioners to efficiently plan, design, construct, and manage SUDS schemes in accordance with best practice guidance.

Water Environment Federation Technical Exhibition and Conference (WEFTEC)
WEFTEC is an annual event that serves as a knowledge and technology exchange for the fields of water and wastewater. WEFTEC offers water quality education and training and is a leading source of development, research, regulations, solutions, and cutting-edge technology.

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Resources, case studies, research, links & tools

American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Sustainable Design and Development
This site introduces documents related to the Systems Integration Tool for Environmentally Sustainable Sites (SITESS) Initiative.

artful rainwater design
This site looks at ways in which stormwataer management can be incorporated into site design in a way that adds to the amenity and user satisfaction of the location. Features include blog discussions, project case studies and slide shows, linked articles and resources, and mechanisms for adding and editing site content. Note: Site is best viewed with a high speed Internet connection.

Center for Watershed Protection
The Center developed an interdisciplinary approach to watershed protection, including stormwater management. The website provides tools such as BMP manuals, models, and case studies for watershed organizations, local governments and activists around the country.

The Conservation Fund: Green Infrastructure
This site provides background information about the green infrastructure movement, highlights green infrastructure projects and initiatives from across the nation, and provides technical resources and links to assist land use decision makers.

EPA Region 10: Storm Water Design to Protect Watersheds
This site lists presentations and articles related to watershed protection created by the Center for Watershed Protection as part of the 2002 Storm Water Design to Protect Watersheds workshop.

EPA Stormwater Case Studies
EPA has developed a series of stormwater case studies to help Phase II municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s) get started on or improve their stormwater management programs. Each case study describes how a Phase I or Phase II community has implemented a specific aspect of its stormwater program.

Low Impact Development Center
The Low Impact Development Center is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of Low Impact Development (LID) technology. This site contains links to various research interests and projects along with a list of clients and available training opportunities.

Low Impact Development Center: Low Impact Development (LID) Urban Design Tools
This site provides an interactive tool that can be used by watershed managers for techniques for urban, residential and transportation application of Low Impact Development (LID) practices.

Managing Stormwater: Best Management Practices (BMPs)
This site hosts video clips explaining and describing several best management practices, links to projects in Pennsylvania that have implemented BMPs, BMP links, and a glossary.

Minnesota Pollution Control Agency: Plants for Stormwater Design
This is a valuable reference for urban landscape designers, installation practitioners, and stormwater managers. It focuses on how to improve stormwater treatment and management practices by using native plants and to improve the understanding of plant species’ susceptibility to water-level fluctuations and landscape pollutants to enable better stormwater detention treatment and aesthetically pleasing systems.

Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC): Stormwater Strategies
This 1999 report documents some of the most effective strategies being employed by communities around the country to control urban runoff pollution and includes a chapter on low impact development. The collection of 100 case studies is intended to serve as a guide for local decisionmakers, municipal officials, and environmental activists.

Nonpoint Education for Municipal Officials (NEMO)
The objective of NEMO is to provide education and assistance for community land use decision makers. The site provides case studies, tools and resources, and publications that serve as a model for communicating the benefits of stormwater BMPs and sustainable development.

Portland Bureau of Environmental Services: Sustainable Stormwater Projects
This site describes the sustainable stormwater efforts in Portland and provides links to various stormwater resources. It includes a list of common terms and technologies.

Stormwater Authority: Best Management Practices
StormwaterAuthority provides information for engineers, contractors, developers, site owners, and regulators on BMPs, regulations, costs, and business decisions. It keeps practitioners up-to-date on innovative stormwater management and treatment.

Stormwater Manager's Resource Center (SMRC)
This site includes downloadable slideshows, a library of resources on stormwater management, links to real world and model ordinances, tools for assessing stream quality, guides for developing stormwater management manuals, resources for developing programs related to stormwater management, and fact sheets that provide general guidance on aquatic resource restoration and protection.

Sustainable Drainage Systems (SUDS): promoting good practice- a CIRIA initiative
This site focuses on sustainable drainage, a concept that includes long term environmental and social factors in decisions about drainage. The site introduces case studies, research, the latest news on sustainable drainage, and publications in sustainable drainage.

Temple-Villanova Sustainable Stormwater Initiative
The Temple-Villanova Sustainable Stormwater Initiative (T-VSSI) is a partnership between Villanova and Temple Universities' research programs to "advance the evolving comprehensive stormwater management field and to foster the development of public and private Partnerships through research on innovative stormwater management BMPs, directed studies, technology transfer, and education."

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Economic Development: Sustainable Development guide
TVA has developed a guide for industrial site development that provides techniques and specifications for environmentally responsible site design. Though designed specifically for projects that employ TVA's technical or financial assistance, this guide contains information that may be useful to anyone involved in stormwater management project development.

ToolBase Services: LID Practices for Storm Water Management
ToolBase Services provides technical information on building products, materials, new technologies, business management, and housing systems. This site introduces Low Impact Development (LID) practices, strategies and design parameters for stormwater management.

University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center
The University of New Hampshire Stormwater Center is part of the Environmental Research Group at the University of New Hampshire, with funding provided by the Cooperative Institute for Coastal and Estuarine Environmental Technology (CICEET) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The Center is creating a database of innovative BMPs for public use. This site introduces examples of BMPs implemented in New England.

US Green Building Council: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)
This site introduces LEED standards, a nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high performance green buildings.

Villanova Urban Stormwater Partnership
The mission of the Villanova Urban Stormwater Partnership is to advance the evolving comprehensive stormwater management field and to foster the development of public and private Partnerships through research on innovative SWM Best Management Practices, Directed Studies, Technology Transfer, and Education.

Water Environment Research Foundation (WERF): Stormwater research area
This site lists a number of research and publications related to stormwater.