Biofilter Basins

As impervious surfaces like asphalt and concrete are constructed to support communities, the footprint of the naturally pervious landscape that traditionally filters stormwater is reduced. To maintain a healthy and resilient watershed, it is important to balance this impervious construction with stormwater management practices that continue to filter the stormwater and remove suspended solids and nutrients that adversely affect downstream water sources. Luck Ecosystems’ RainScape Stormwater Management family of products ensures a healthier environment with engineered materials that keep waterways naturally pollutant-free. One highly effective stormwater best management practice is diverting surface runoff from the impervious surfaces to bioretention facilities. The bioretention facility can be a single basin or series of basins that use under-drains covered in stone and engineered media to filter the inflow of stormwater. The filtering process removes nutrients like phosphorous and nitrogen which are in turn used to promote plant growth in the basins. Bioretention basins are not only a highly effective stormwater management practice but they also provide community green space where native plant species can flourish.

In Greenville VA, a truck stop was being built that required a large acreage of impervious surface construction. This particular project employed a bioretention facility with multiple basins to collect and filter the inflow of stormwater. Luck Ecosystems provided nearly 4,000 tons of DEQ v2.0 Biofilter Media for the construction of the four bioretention basins. This project was particularly unique because the excavation of the basins required drilling and blasting to achieve proper depths in the basins. The site contractor proactively took measures to ensure that site erosion was controlled and would not cause surrounding sediment to flow into the basins or onto the media. Some of the erosion control methods employed included; ECII blankets, hydro seeding, double stacked filter socks, and blocking off inlets until the surrounding surface was stabilized. The contractor also used a telebelt to place the media to ensure that over-compaction would not occur and the media would maintain its specified permeability. When constructing a bioretention basin, care should be taken to reduce media compaction and stabilize surrounding soils. Proper construction will provide continued stormwater management with maintenance practices similar to that of general landscaping – mulching, pruning, trash removal, etc.