Maryland Green Building Network
    July 8, 2003
    Chesapeake Bay Program Office
    Annapolis, MD
Introductions and Announcements

Sean McGuire, Green Building Network Coordinator, welcomed attendees to the meeting and then reviewed some of the items listed in the previous GBN announcements and alerts. Of particular attention is that Sean was notified that the “Greening the Hospitality Industry Conference” is postponed. Sean will notify the Network as soon as a date is finalized.

Sean also commented on two other projects the DNR’s Environmental Design Program recently concluded. First, the ED Program partnered with the Anne Arundel Community College’s Architectural Department on a project to visually demonstrate what a green building looks like. Students were given the task to create a model of a hypothetical DNR State Park Visitor Center and make it at least LEED Silver. The students went far beyond the call of duty and came up with some amazing models. The winning model will be on display at public venues throughout the state, and Sean hopes the team can join us for the next GBN meeting.

The second major initiative was partnering with the City of Annapolis to conduct a workshop on the Capital’s extensive environmental policy initiatives. In attendance, the City’s stormwater manager, Harry Santourni, described just a few of the many initiatives. Of particular note on the issue of stormwater, the City is proposing a stormwater utility dubbed, “A Nickel a Day For the Bay.” The nominal fee will be added to residential and commercial water bills and will be used for stormwater retrofits and maintenance as well as additional staff members.

Also in attendance was Ruth Newell from the City of Bowie. Bowie is currently undergoing several environmentally sensitive projects, including its new Department of Parks and Grounds building that will be LEED Certified. In addition, Ruth helped to create a wonderful website on green buildings and sustainability. The site can be reviewed at www.cityofbowie.org/green/green.htm.

Analyzing and Evaluating Low Impact Development Approaches – Dr. Paul Koch, Low Impact Development Center

Paul began with a discussion of “Retention Optimization for Peak Flow Control.” This application of Rational Method assumptions shows how a tiered retention system can meet a peak flow reduction target for less capacity than would otherwise be required by detention at the outlet. (Retention was defined as an amount of water that is captured so that it never reaches an outlet during a storm event.)

The second part of Paul’s presentation was a dynamic model of the flow of runoff through a bioretention cell during a storm event. The model is designed to show how the flow rates change depending on pond dimensions, soil characteristics, weir dimensions, and underdrain size.

Lastly, Paul demonstrated the use of a spreadsheet that adapts standard NRCS runoff calculations (TR-20) to determine the hydrologic effect of providing a variety of interconnected runoff management components on a site. The components could include, for example, rain gardens, green roofs, permeable pavement, and rain barrels. The Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) is supporting the development of the spreadsheet as a cost effective way of assessing the degree to which LID features can meet regulatory peak flow targets and reduce the required design capacity of detention ponds. Testing of the spreadsheet on a variety of actual site designs is expected to commence shortly.

For additional questions or materials, please contact Dr. Koch at 301-982-5559 or prkoch@lowimpactdevelopment.org. The Low Impact Development Center can be contacted by going online to www.lowimpactdevelopment.org.

Attendees

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Last updated on July 9, 2003