Natural Treatment System Revisited

Edge of El Modena Park basin before plants grew in

Storm basin pump station performs during wet California winter.

Folks at Irvine Ranch Irrigation District (IRWD) in Orange County, Calif. are pleased with the performance of the El Modena Park storm basin, part of the San Diego Creek Natural Treatment System (www.naturaltreatmentsystem.org), a regional approach to treating urban runoff. In the first wet winter experience with the storm basin, some lessons have been learned while achieving nitrate removal.

During precipitation, runoff in the nearby flood control channel is diverted into the park’s man-made wetland. Besides reducing the direct flow into San Joaquin Marsh in the upper reach of Newport Bay, the constructed wetland is designed to naturally cleanse urban runoff before it reenters the channel. Plants at the perimeter of the basin help remove nitrates and other pollutants from the water. Keeping the water at just the right level for these plants to thrive, a key factor in  biofiltration system’s success, is the job of the Romtec Utilities duplex submersible stormwater pumping system installed in 2008. Read more