Description:

Co-Sponsored with the Center for Water Research

Speaker: Dr. Richard Ambrose, UCLA

Title: Stormwater capture meets urban ecology: The role biofilters can play in enhancing biodiversity and ecosystem services in cities

Abstract

A variety of stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs) are being deployed extensively in urban areas to reduce the negative effects of stormwater runoff. The design of these BMPs focus on capturing and treating stormwater, but some types of BMPs provide important co-benefits that are rarely recognized. Natural stormwater treatment systems, such as green roofs and biofilters, provide ecosystem services and ecological values not found in other types of BMPs. Many of these services, such as carbon sequestration, temperature moderation, air quality improvement, and aesthetics and other cultural services, provide valuable benefits to human health and well-being. In this talk, I will discuss some of the ecosystem services biofilters can provide as well as how they can support urban biodiversity. I will present preliminary results from our studies of biofilters in southern California and Melbourne, Australia. Since very little research has been conducted on biofilters themselves, I will also discuss how knowledge about urban green infrastructure can be applied to biofilters. Improved understanding of the factors influencing the ecosystem services or ecological values provided by natural treatment systems could lead to better designs that maximize these co-benefits along with stormwater functions. Although individually natural stormwater treatment systems are small, effective urban stormwater management will require an extensive network of BMPs so collectively they can make a significant contribution to urban ecology.

Richard Ambrose is a Professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences and the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at UCLA. He received his B.S. from UC Irvine and his Ph.D. from UCLA. He spent seven years at the Marine Science Institute at UC Santa Barbara before returning to UCLA in 1992. He teaches graduate courses covering environmental assessment, restoration ecology, conservation biology, and the ecological effects of climate change. His research includes the restoration of degraded coastal habitats, monitoring change in rocky intertidal habitats, evaluating climate change impacts and adaptation strategies for coastal habitats, and evaluating the ecological aspects of biofilters used to capture and treat stormwater and other urban runoff. He serves on scientific advisory panels for many organizations, including the California Ocean Protection Council, California Coastal Commission, the Southern California Wetland Recovery Project, and the Santa Monica Bay Restoration Commission.