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Sustainability
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Green Infrastructure and Sustainable Stormwater Management
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Green Infrastructure and Sustainable Stormwater Management

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Engineering and Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (26 May 2025) | Viewed by 3641

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Cara Poor

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Shiley School of Engineering, University of Portland, Portland, OR 97203, USA
Interests: stormwater; water quality; green infrastructure; urban development
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Increased urban development has caused flooding and the impairment of water bodies in many cities. Climate change has exacerbated these issues, with more localized, intense storms. To alleviate flooding and treat stormwater before being transported to rivers and lakes, some cities have implemented green infrastructure. The recent literature has shown that green infrastructure can effectively reduce flooding if implemented properly and remove certain contaminants, but it also exports other contaminants such as nutrients and copper. More research is needed on innovative techniques for managing stormwater in a sustainable way and ensuring that contaminants do not impact drinking water sources and aquatic health. In addition, only a few studies have been performed on the removal of emerging contaminants such as microplastics and PFAS. The removal mechanisms of emerging contaminants in green infrastructure need to be better understood. The purpose of this Special Issue is to explore new innovative methods for stormwater management to minimize the impacts of urban development on the hydrologic cycle and increase contaminant removal from stormwater.

I invite you to contribute papers that explore sustainable stormwater management techniques, the impacts of contaminants in stormwater, and how contaminants can be removed from stormwater in urban areas. This could include studies from the laboratory scale to the watershed scale, studies evaluating how climate change will impact stormwater management and contaminant transport and transformations, or other studies evaluating innovative stormwater management techniques. The focus on contaminants could include nutrients, metals, microplastics, PFAS, hydrocarbons, or other emerging contaminants. Submissions on water quantity, water quality, or both, are encouraged.

Dr. Cara Poor
Guest Editor

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2400 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.

Keywords

  • stormwater
  • water quality
  • quantity
  • green infrastructure
  • urban development

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 6342 KiB  
Article
Innovative Use of UHPC and Topology Optimization in Permeable Interlocking Pavers: Advancing Sustainable Pavement Solutions
by Fernanda Gadler, José Augusto Ferreira Sales de Mesquita, Francisco Helio Alencar Oliveira, Liedi Legi Bariani Bernucci, Rafael Giuliano Pileggi, Emilio Carlos Nelli Silva and Diego Silva Prado
Sustainability 2025, 17(13), 6039; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17136039 - 1 Jul 2025
Viewed by 358
Abstract
The rapid expansion of urban areas has increased the prevalence of impermeable surfaces, intensifying flooding risks by disrupting natural water infiltration. Permeable pavements have emerged as a sustainable alternative, capable of reducing stormwater runoff, improving surface friction, and mitigating urban heat island effects. [...] Read more.
The rapid expansion of urban areas has increased the prevalence of impermeable surfaces, intensifying flooding risks by disrupting natural water infiltration. Permeable pavements have emerged as a sustainable alternative, capable of reducing stormwater runoff, improving surface friction, and mitigating urban heat island effects. Nevertheless, their broader implementation is often hindered by issues such as clogging and limited mechanical strength resulting from high porosity. This study examines the design of interlocking permeable blocks utilizing ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC) to strike a balance between enhanced drainage capacity and high structural performance. A topology optimization (TO) strategy was applied to numerically model the ideal block geometry, incorporating 105 drainage channels with a diameter of 6 mm—chosen to ensure manufacturability and structural integrity. The UHPC formulation was developed using particle packing optimization with ordinary Portland cement (OPC), silica fume, and limestone filler to reduce binder content while achieving superior strength and workability, guided by rheological assessments. Experimental tests revealed that the perforated UHPC blocks reached compressive strengths of 87.8 MPa at 7 days and 101.0 MPa at 28 days, whereas the solid UHPC blocks achieved compressive strengths of 125.8 MPa and 146.2 MPa, respectively. In contrast, commercial permeable concrete blocks reached only 28.9 MPa at 28 days. Despite a reduction of approximately 30.9% in strength due to perforations, the UHPC-105holes blocks still far exceed the 41 MPa threshold required for certain structural applications. These results highlight the mechanical superiority of the UHPC blocks and confirm their viability for structural use even with enhanced permeability features. The present research emphasizes mechanical and structural performance, while future work will address hydraulic conductivity and anticlogging behavior. Overall, the findings support the use of topology-optimized UHPC permeable blocks as a resilient solution for sustainable urban drainage systems, combining durability, strength, and environmental performance. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Infrastructure and Sustainable Stormwater Management)
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17 pages, 2612 KiB  
Article
Reduction of Runoff Pollutants from Major Arterial Roads Using Porous Pavement
by Katie Holzer and Cara Poor
Sustainability 2024, 16(17), 7506; https://doi.org/10.3390/su16177506 - 30 Aug 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2632 | Correction
Abstract
Stormwater runoff from large roads is a major source of pollutants to receiving waters, and reduction of these pollutants is important for sustainable water resources and transportation networks. Porous pavements have been shown to substantially reduce many of these pollutants, but studies are [...] Read more.
Stormwater runoff from large roads is a major source of pollutants to receiving waters, and reduction of these pollutants is important for sustainable water resources and transportation networks. Porous pavements have been shown to substantially reduce many of these pollutants, but studies are lacking on arterial roads. We sampled typical stormwater pollutants in runoff from sections of an arterial road 9–16 years after installation of three pavement types: control with conventional asphalt, porous asphalt overly, and full-depth porous asphalt. Both types of porous pavements substantially reduced most of the stormwater pollutants measured. Total suspended solids, turbidity, total lead, total copper, and 6PPD-quinone were all reduced by >75%. Total nitrogen, ammonia, total phosphorus, biochemical oxygen demand, total and dissolved copper, total mercury, total zinc, total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate were all reduced by >50%. Reductions were lower or absent for nitrate, orthophosphate, E. coli, dissolved lead, and dissolved zinc. Most reductions were statistically significant. Many pollutants exceeded applicable water quality standards in the control samples but met them with both types of porous pavement. This study demonstrates that porous overlays and full-depth porous asphalt can provide substantial reductions of several priority stormwater pollutants on arterial roads for many years after installation. Porous pavements have the potential to substantially enhance water quality of urban waterways and provide ecological benefits on urban thoroughfares. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Green Infrastructure and Sustainable Stormwater Management)
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