Urban watershed modeling in Seattle, Washington using VELMA: a spatially explicit ecohydrological watershed model
Presentation Abstract
Urban watersheds are notoriously difficult to model due to their complex, small-scale combinations of landscape and land use characteristics including impervious surfaces that ultimately affect the hydrologic system. We utilized EPA’s Visualizing Ecosystem Land Management Assessments (VELMA) model, which is a spatially explicit (i.e., gridded) ecohydrological watershed model, to simulate watershed-scale hydrologic discharge and nutrient concentrations for several urban stream systems in Seattle, Washington, including Thornton Creek, Piper’s Creek, Longfellow Creek, and Taylor Creek. A 1-meter land use classification is used to distinguish four cover types, including roads, buildings, trees, and grass. After model calibration and validation, we construct scenarios of hypothetical green roof implementations and simulate their impacts on watershed-scale discharge. Results show that VELMA is capable of simulating the impacts of targeted green infrastructure management practices to reduce peak stream flow events. These results suggest that VELMA can facilitate the prioritization of urban water infrastructure to improve water quality in urban streams leading to Puget Sound.
Session Title
Stormwater Characterization and Management Using a Watershed Approach
Conference Track
SSE3: Fate, Transport, and Toxicity of Chemicals
Conference Name
Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (2018 : Seattle, Wash.)
Document Type
Event
SSEC Identifier
SSE3-386
Start Date
6-4-2018 10:45 AM
End Date
6-4-2018 11:00 AM
Type of Presentation
Oral
Genre/Form
conference proceedings; presentations (communicative events)
Contributing Repository
Digital content made available by University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Subjects – Topical (LCSH)
Urban watersheds--Washington (State)--Seattle; Ecohydrology--Washington (State)--Seattle; Hydrologic models--Washington (State)--Seattle
Geographic Coverage
Seattle (Wash.)
Rights
This resource is displayed for educational purposes only and may be subject to U.S. and international copyright laws. For more information about rights or obtaining copies of this resource, please contact University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA 98225-9103, USA (360-650-7534; heritage.resources@wwu.edu) and refer to the collection name and identifier. Any materials cited must be attributed to the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Records, University Archives, Heritage Resources, Western Libraries, Western Washington University.
Type
Text
Language
English
Format
application/pdf
Urban watershed modeling in Seattle, Washington using VELMA: a spatially explicit ecohydrological watershed model
Urban watersheds are notoriously difficult to model due to their complex, small-scale combinations of landscape and land use characteristics including impervious surfaces that ultimately affect the hydrologic system. We utilized EPA’s Visualizing Ecosystem Land Management Assessments (VELMA) model, which is a spatially explicit (i.e., gridded) ecohydrological watershed model, to simulate watershed-scale hydrologic discharge and nutrient concentrations for several urban stream systems in Seattle, Washington, including Thornton Creek, Piper’s Creek, Longfellow Creek, and Taylor Creek. A 1-meter land use classification is used to distinguish four cover types, including roads, buildings, trees, and grass. After model calibration and validation, we construct scenarios of hypothetical green roof implementations and simulate their impacts on watershed-scale discharge. Results show that VELMA is capable of simulating the impacts of targeted green infrastructure management practices to reduce peak stream flow events. These results suggest that VELMA can facilitate the prioritization of urban water infrastructure to improve water quality in urban streams leading to Puget Sound.
