So, what makes a stormwater management pond “smart?”
“Port Tampa Bay is a leading supporter of this environmentally friendly innovation.” “This technology is creating a better net gain for the environment, with more nitrogen treatment, and is increasing the amount of usable space for Port Tampa Bay,” Port Tampa Bay Environmental Director Christopher Cooley said. The Florida Recycling Partnership Foundation recently awarded NST with its Environmental Stewardship Award for safely capturing and preventing 175,000+ cubic feet of untreated stormwater at its pond adjacent to Port Tampa Bay from flowing into Tampa Bay during Hurricane Ian. While these ponds are proving their strength and resiliency, they also encompass environmental protection efforts. “As our community grows, we look forward to continued collaboration with NST to incorporate their Smart Pond technology.” “This confirms for me the value of smart stormwater technology,” Kitson said. This real-time flood forecasting capability gave the community’s leaders assurances that its large lakes had adequate storage to contain the stormwater and protect the homes, roadways and schools.įor Syd Kitson, Chairman and CEO of Kitson & Partners, developers of Babcock Ranch, the data made a difference. That extra storage enabled the pond to capture more than 175,000 cubic feet of untreated stormwater, preventing it from discharging into the neighboring community and from flowing into Tampa Bay.Īt Babcock Ranch, which is located near the Caloosahatchee River, Smart Pond live rainfall forecasts were used to project the impact of the storm before its arrival. Smart Pond technology that was installed in an existing stormwater pond adjacent to the seaport, allowed stormwater managers at NST to remotely lower the water level in the pond by almost 4 feet before the first hurricane bands began to impact the region. “But when a storm the size of Hurricane Ian is headed towards Florida, our objective shifts to protecting our communities and the environment from the flooding impacts of stormwater.”Īs the name implies, Port Tampa Bay sits on one of Florida’s prized waterways – Tampa Bay.
“Our primary focus is on improving water quality,” Jeff Littlejohn, co-founder of National Stormwater Trust, said. (NST) to improve their water quality and build flood resiliency. One such example from the near-Category 5 Hurricane Ian is the performance of smart stormwater management technology at Babcock Ranch, located in hard-hit Charlotte County, and Port Tampa Bay.īabcock Ranch, a planned community, and Port Tampa Bay are just two of several Florida locations that have tapped into stormwater management technology provided by National Stormwater Trust, Inc. While Floridians are resilient and pressing forward to rebuild their lives, businesses and neighborhoods, many are looking for ways to improve the resiliency of their communities before the next large storm. History books have closed on the 2022 Hurricane Season, but not before leaving a trail of destruction from hurricanes Ian and Nicole.
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