QUALITY AND QUANTITY OF STORM WATER RUNOFF FROM THREE LAND-USE AREAS, BROWARD COUNTY, FLORIDA

Rainfall, runoff and runoff quality were measured for three urban sewered basins for approximately two years. Records were collected for a 47-acre single-family residential area; a 58-acre, 3,000 foot secondary divided-highway segment; and a 28-acre commercial shopping center. The three homogeneous areas were gaged with an automatic, integrated instrumentation package or urban hydrology monitor. The urban hydrology monitor collects and synchronously records 36-second interval rainfall and water-level information. The collection time of 24 water-quality samples is also recorded. Discharge is computed from the difference in stage through a U-shaped constriction (Venturi flume) placed in a sewer pipe. Approximately 100 rainfall-runoff periods per site were digitized from analog record and stored in an urban data management system. Sets of nutrient and heavy-metal water-quality data were collected for 30 or more storms at each of the three areas and stored in the system. Loads computed for the three areas indicate the importance of the hydraulic interconnection between impervious areas. Factors which affect storm-water runoff loads include landuse, proportion of hydraulically interconnected impervious area, seasonal distribution of rainfall, and the antecedent dry period.