Evaluation of the environmental impact of bridge deck runoff.

Details

• Creators:
  Bartelt-Hunt, Shannon ; Jones, Elizabeth ; Swadener, Lauren ; Jaft Haverian, Mohammad
• Corporate Creators:
  University of Nebraska--Lincoln. Dept. of Civil Engineering
• Corporate Contributors:
  United States. Federal Highway Administration
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  Aquatic Life Bridge Decks Bridges--Drainage Systems--Environmental Aspects Drainage Structures Environmental Impact Analysis Runoff Runoff--Environmental Aspects Streams Water Quality
• Publication/ Report Number:
  SPR-P1(12) M315
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Nebraska
• Corporate Publisher:
  Nebraska Transportation Center
• Abstract:
  Bridges are located in very close proximity to receiving waters, and regulatory agencies often require specific stormwater
  
  control measures for bridge deck runoff. While there is some information available on roadway runoff, few studies have
  
  focused on bridge deck runoff. Currently, there is no information available regarding the impacts of bridge deck runoff on
  
  receiving waters in Nebraska. Due to the cost, maintenance, and design issues associated with implementing structural
  
  controls for bridge deck runoff, it is important to develop a better understanding of the relationship between bridge deck
  
  runoff and potential impacts to receiving streams. The objectives of this research were to evaluate the quality of bridge
  
  deck runoff; to determine the effects of bridge deck runoff on surface water bodies in Nebraska by evaluating water and
  
  sediment chemistry; and to evaluate the effects of bridge deck runoff on aquatic life. The goal was to identify the potential
  
  environmental impacts of bridge deck runoff on receiving streams, and to determine design criteria that could be used by
  
  NDOR or regulatory agencies to identify when structural controls for bridge deck runoff may be necessary to protect instream
  
  water quality and aquatic life. Throughout the course of the project, we conducted in-stream dry weather sampling,
  
  sediment sampling, wet weather bridge runoff sampling, and preliminary toxicity testing. Statistical analysis of upstream
  
  and downstream in-stream samples showed that bridges did not impact the quality of the water body. Sediment sampling
  
  did not show an increase in streambed sediment concentrations from downstream to upstream. The concentrations of
  
  bridge runoff samples were higher than literature event mean concentration (EMC) values. This was mainly due to the fact
  
  that the summer of 2012 had only two rain events of significant size and there was a large antecedent dry period (ADP)
  
  between storms, making the samples much more concentrated. Two runoff events were also used in a 48-hour 5 dilution
  
  series toxicity test with fat head minnows, and no negative effects were found. These preliminary results show that there
  
  were no apparent effects of bridges on water quality and aquatic life.
  
  
• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  M315
• Collection(s):
  US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:eb2d811cc7f559912fc53eaf2906603b12f1530b82b9da5aa65d783de3d1acf3d160c11a0f137ea884762b616816a82cee1b58b62a7f526da588c27251ea3860
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/25602/dot_25602_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 2.74 MB ]