STEP tools and resources

Starkregen heavy rain

Watershed scale

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
• Sourcewater protection water quality risk assessment for climate change - handbook/worksheet
• Westhoff water balance model
• Wetland hydrologic analysis tool

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
• Risk and return and investment tool
• Thermal stream index
• Hotspot identification tool-sediment
• Natural assets project

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
• Soil risk assessment tool
• Wetland water balance module: Visual Otthymo 5

Stormwater management plan

• Rainwater harvesting design and costing tool
• Oil and grit separator sizing 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 and Compost amended planting soil specification template

Post construction maintenance or monitoring

• Green infrastructure asset management tool
• SWM facilities maintenance tracking status asset management tool

Online training modules

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

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

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

(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).

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.

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.

Stormwater Management