The Emerging Importance of Stormwater Management with a Focus on the City of Philadelphia

Over 80 percent of the population of the United States lives in cities. The large population coupled with a dense built environment means that cities are generally at a higher risk for the negative consequences of polluted water. Philadelphia is a dense urban city with two major waterways flowing through it. As a city with a large population and large percentage of developed land, flood control and water quality are two major issues facing the City. In 2006, the Philadelphia Water Department passed a regulation requiring new development and redevelopment projects to manage stormwater runoff. An assessment was completed to understand why particular stormwater management practices were chosen in various private development projects throughout Philadelphia and learn the positives and negatives of managing them.