Green Infrastructure for Sustainable Stormwater Management

Dear Colleagues,

 

The key objective of a traditional stormwater management system is to prevent flood by conveying the runoff away quickly and effectively; stormwater runoff has been viewed as a hazard that poses danger to public health. To achieve this objective, natural waterways were often lined with concrete and widened to increase the carrying capacity of the system. The use of such systems, although effective, are not sustainable. Pollutants, such as heavy metals, excess nutrients, and suspended solids, are often washed into stormwater runoff receiving waterbodies, causing water pollution. Traditional stormwater management systems, therefore, do not provide protection to freshwater resources and often lead to destruction of natural watersheds and habitat. There is also a limitation in such management system due to space availability, which limits how wide these canals and drainage can be constructed.

In recent years, there has been a rise in awareness for the development of green infrastructure for managing urban stormwater in order to address the limitations of traditional urban stormwater management systems. Unlike traditional urban stormwater management systems, these green infrastructures can help to provide water quality treatment and protect the runoff receiving waterbodies against pollutions. Apart from water quality improvement, these stormwater treatment facilities help to protect low lying areas against flood due to their ability to retain and detain stormwater runoff, allowing for storage, infiltration and evaporation. Through these natural processes, flow peaks of stormwater hydrograph can be reduced and the timing of its occurrence can be delayed, minimizing the impact of urbanization. The green infrastructures also help to maintain the hydrological balance in the urban landscape. Ecologically, green infrastructures provide natural habitats, which support a diverse ecosystem. The addition of greeneries also help to soften urban landscape and beautify the surrounding.

Green infrastructure that can be used for stormwater runoff management includes rain gardens, bioretention swale and trees, green roofs, etc. The design of such systems is versatile and can be modified to meet the needs of the area of interest. This Special Issue focuses on novel ideas and technologies relating to green infrastructure for sustainable storm water management, with an emphasis on water quality enhancement and quantity control. Any other related topics are also welcome.

We look forward to your contributions to this Special Issue and your help in promoting/facilitating green infrastructure planning, development and implementation.

 

Dr. Jiangyong Hu
Dr. Say Leong Ong
Dr. Haifeng Jia
Dr. Moo Young Han
Dr. Yongju Choi

Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Infrastructures is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.