STEP tools and resources

Watershed scale

Lake Ontario Watershed

These tools might assist in proposing policies and management programs focusing on conservation and preservation; effect of land use on environmental resources.

Municipal stormwater risk management framework

As part of the Peel Climate Change Partnership initiative to build flood resiliency, this project seeks to support member municipalities in building stormwater system resilience by assessing existing standards for applicability to stormwater and their ability to integrate climate change solutions. Using the Town of Caledon as a case study, this project draws on best practices in standards development and risk analysis to suggest elements for a Municipal Stormwater Risk Management Framework (MSW RMF).

Sourcewater protection water quality risk assessment for climate change

This project is to develop a science-based handbook for the assessment of source water quality vulnerabilities to climate change. The handbook will assist Source Water Protection Committees with the preparation of Climate Change adaptation policies to address the relevant climate change impacts associated with their source protection areas. The handbook will include guidance and worksheets for carrying out climate change vulnerability assessment in order to incorporate relevant broad scale indicators into the drinking source water vulnerability scoring assessment.

Wetland hydrologic analysis tool

The Wetland Hydroperiod Analysis Tool (WHAT) was designed to analyze wetland hydrology time series data to concisely describe the annual statistical distribution of water level depths. The statistical distribution of water levels in a wetland is referred to as the hydroperiod, and is an important determinant of a wetland’s ecological structure and function. WHAT is based on The Nature Conservancy’s Indicators of Hydrologic Alteration (IHA) software (TNC, 2009) but is designed to facilitate analysis of wetland data rather than streamflow data and uses a somewhat different set of metrics. The metrics produced by WHAT can be used to determine the hydroperiod of a wetland in a natural reference condition, to compare the hydroperiods of different wetlands, or to compare the pre-development hydroperiod to the modeled or monitored post-development hydroperiod for the purposes of a feature-based water balance analysis.

• Westhoff water balance model

Subwatershed scale

These tools help assess the effect of land use scenarios and urban stormwater practices on different objectives of water balance, stream erosion, water quality , temperature, baseflow, flooding, fisheries, aquatic life. They may assist in choosing preferred strategies based on public acceptance, cost, technical feasibility, ability to meet goals and objectives, potential to enhance environmental impact of strategy on future land uses.

Macroeconomic study

This project (due 2020) will develop, test and deliver a first-ever methodology and model employing an "Equitable Responsibility" approach for transformational stormwater design. The user-driven model will enable detailed analysis and cross-analysis of multiple parameters for stormwater management (SWM), hydrologic function and cost-benefit comparisons applying scale and infrastructure aggregation, integration and distribution, and climate change scenarios to achieve optimal system performance for mitigation of risks (e.g., flooding, drought, erosion, source water contamination, etc) associated increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather. The methodology and model will also provide for the development of a municipal-cost sharing or equitable responsibility mechanism for drainage basin-scale (and larger scale) SWM systems.

Risk and return and investment tool

A Tool for water infrastructure that will help municipalities and conservation authorities make evidence-based cost-effective decisions to reduce flood risk. The Tool will perform the following key functions:

• Fully assess baseline flood risk and quantify the potential impact
• Evaluate overall risk-reduction that can be achieved by various management options
• Perform a financial assessment of the return on investment associated with each management option, by comparing life cycle costs to the costs mitigated by reducing flood risk.

Thermal stream index

A GIS exercise for indexing streams based on thermal monitoring and interpolation

Hotspot identification tool-sediment

This project is GIS exercise which identifies areas of relative high-risk within a subwatershed for sediment delivery to water bodies. Uses stream power index and soil erodibility in rural areas, and event mean concentrations and stormwater management features in urban areas. Contact amanjot.singh(at)cvc.ca

Natural assets project

The Municipal Natural Assets Initiative (MNAI) pilot project for the Region of Peel quantifies the level of stormwater services (flood control and water quality control) provided by natural assets such as wetlands, forests and open green spaces, and the value of such services under existing climate and with climate change. The valuation is intended to assist municipalities in accounting for natural assets in municipal asset management framework. The study was completed for two subwatersheds within CVC’s jurisdiction of Peel, and is being expanded to include all of credit river watershed and the entire Region of Peel.

Environmental impact report/ subdivision plan scale

If your seeking to summarize findings of watershed, subwatershed plans and done on a tributary subcatchment boundary.

Integrated water management tool

This tool helps to build a strong business case within a sustainability framework (environmental, economic, social) for implementing connected and spatially intensive green infrastructure that can reduce the impacts of stormwater flows (e.g. overland runoff, erosion, and water quality) and provide associated co-benefits to the community. The tool can consider future land use change/ climate change scenarios. The IWM tool can be used to model and determine GI types, sizing and intensity of application at a site/ neighbourhood level to meet SWM criteria while considering the cost and co-benefits of the design. This tool can be used to determine GI opportunities on priority sites identified by the Risk and Return on Investment Tool.

Soil risk assessment tool

The Soil Risk Assessment (SRA) Tool has been created to predict average annual soil loss from areas which have implemented a variety of ESC measures. The SRA tool can be used to assess the efficiency of ESCs on construction sites and to determine areas of high erosion risk.

Wetland water balance module: Visual Otthymo 5

Civica has developed the Wetland Water Balance module for VO5 to help modelers complete a feature-based water balance analysis, as may be required to satisfy TRCA's SWM Criteria Document criteria for "water balance for protection of natural features" (Appendix D). The module simulates wetland storage dynamics (hydroperiod) and their response to changes in the catchment parameters relative to a baseline, pre-development condition.

Stormwater management planning

Starkregen heavy rain

Oil and grit separator sizing tool

The tool sizes OGS based on recently completed testing through ETV/ISO (Released as of 2023 - Please check the OGS page).

• Rainwater harvesting design and costing tool

• Hantush groundwater mounding calculator
• Percolation test calculation
• Low Impact Development Treatment Train Tool
• Low Impact Development lifecycle costing tool
• Fusion gardening evaluation tool
• Inter-event dashboard

Topsoil and soil amendment calculator

This best practices guide is intended to provide both the rationale and practical guidance needed to improve conventional urban construction soil management practices in Ontario. It is a useful resource to designers and engineers involved in urban and landscape design, government agencies involved in the permitting and inspection of urban construction projects and contractors involved in urban construction and landscaping.

Post construction maintenance or monitoring

Green infrastructure asset management

Tool to support integrating green infrastructure asset management with existing grey infrastructure software. Includes platform for tracking inspection and maintenance information for green infrastructure facilities.

SWM facilities maintenance tracking status asset management

The objective of the Project is to enhance the ability for agencies to track the presence and maintenance status of SWM facilities, including LID, in the Lake Simcoe watershed.

Online training modules

• Design Infiltration Rate
• Building Forward: Preparing For LID Construction

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The drainage area of a river.

An area of land that drains into a river or a lake. The boundary of a watershed is based on the elevation (natural contours) of a landscape.

A vegetated area such as a bog, fen, marsh, or swamp, where the soil or root zone is saturated for part of the year.

A vegetated area such as a bog, fen, marsh, or swamp, where the soil or root zone is saturated for part of the year.

refers to the characteristics and functions of a system prior to urban development.

The accounting of inflow and outflow of water in a system according to the components of the hydrologic cycle.

(1) The wearing away of the land surface by moving water, wind, ice or other geological agents, including such processes as gravitation creep; (2) Detachment and movement of soil or rock fragments by water, wind, ice or gravity (i.e. Accelerated, geological, gully, natural, rill, sheet, splash, or impact, etc).

Stormwater Management

Ground depression acting as a flow control and water treatment structure, that is normally dry.

Soil, sand and minerals washed from land into water, usually after rain. They pile up in reservoirs, rivers and harbors, destroying fish-nesting areas and holes of water animals and cloud the water so that needed sunlight might not reach aquatic plans. Careless farming, mining and building activities will expose sediment materials, allowing them to be washed off the land after rainfalls.

Credit Valley Conservation

The drainage area of a river.

An area of land that drains into a river or a lake. The boundary of a watershed is based on the elevation (natural contours) of a landscape.

Natural vegetation and vegetative technologies in urban settings such as: urban forests; green roofs; green walls; green spaces; rain gardens; bioswales; community gardens; natural and engineered wetlands and stormwater management ponds; and porous pavement systems. These systems are designed to provide multiple benefits, such as moderate temperatures, clean air and water, and improve aesthetics.

The portion of water precipitated onto a catchment area, which then flows as surface discharge from the catchment area past a specified point.

Water from rain, snow melt, or irrigation that flows over the land surface.

Green infrastructure

Toronto and Region Conservation Authority

The land draining to a single reference point (usually a structural BMP); similar to a subwatershed, but on a smaller scale.

Systems designed to remove trash, debris and some amount of sediment, oil and grease from stormwater runoff based on the principles of sedimentation for the grit and phase separation for the oil.

Natural vegetation and vegetative technologies in urban settings such as: urban forests; green roofs; green walls; green spaces; rain gardens; bioswales; community gardens; natural and engineered wetlands and stormwater management ponds; and porous pavement systems. These systems are designed to provide multiple benefits, such as moderate temperatures, clean air and water, and improve aesthetics.

Low Impact Development. A stormwater management strategy that seeks to mitigate the impacts of increased urban runoff and stormwater pollution by managing it as close to its source as possible. It comprises a set of site design approaches and small scale stormwater management practices that promote the use of natural systems for infiltration and evapotranspiration, and rainwater harvesting.