An integrated weather–hydrologic–coastal–stormwater framework to model urban‐coastal interactions: City of Hoboken application

Abstract

This study presents a flood prediction framework that uses multiscale operational models representing meteorological, coastal, hydrologic, and hydraulic stormwater components. A dual‐drainage (street‐sewer) model forms the framework core and receives inputs from coastal and meteorological models. The framework was tested in a flood‐prone area within the City of Hoboken, New Jersey. Hoboken's aging combined sewer system is regularly overwhelmed by rainfall, storm surge, or their combination resulting in nuisance flooding. The utility of the framework was demonstrated by retrospectively forecasting (72‐hr horizon) two contrasting extreme flood events, a rainfall dominated event (Hurricane Irene) and a surge dominated event (Hurricane Sandy). The simulations showed that overland flow from storm surge and low‐lying topography were major factor in surcharging the sewer system resulting in flooding. This modelling approach captures multiscale interactions and demonstrates the importance of holistically representing short‐term stressors in urban‐coastal systems. The framework can be run in ensemble mode to account for uncertainty in atmospheric forcing and aid decision making but this option was not explored in this study. Despite the limitations in expanding the dual‐drainage domain to the entire city of Hoboken, the study offers interesting perspectives on leveraging existing models and predicting system response to different stressors.

Landscape Design toward Urban Resilience: Bridging Science and Physical Design Coupling Sociohydrological Modeling and Design Process

“…To this end, we employed three quantitative methods in which the analytic results can be displayed and translated graphically, and results can deliver useful information of "what to prioritize" and "what to expect". For the analyses, we selected four design factors that are physically manipulatable in practice, including surface imperviousness, slope percentage, and types of vegetation, based on the hydrology literature and stormwater projects [26,73,74]. Note that in selecting the design variables, we intentionally excluded variables that much of hydrology research indicates are detrimental contributors to runoff, such as rainfall, Leaf Area Index (LAI), and evapotranspiration [75].…”

“…Alberti [5] argues that we need to refine existing planning and design methods with simulation models in order to address uncertainty. Saleh et al [26] comparably claim that there is a need to develop a cross-disciplinary modeling framework to actively aid decision making and understand urban systems as dynamic with multiple states. Frazier et al [27] demonstrate the importance of the ability to adapt to unknown changes in establishing a resilient built environment.…”

A Framework for Mechanistic Flood Inundation Forecasting at the Metropolitan Scale

“…Collectively, this work points to several promising approaches to meet the need for high speed ( S > 20), fine‐resolution (∼3 m), short‐range (hours to days) forecasts of flood inundation over entire metropolitan areas in response to multiple hazard drivers, but important questions remain about the level of forecast skill that is possible based on uncertainty in model forcing and parameters, and the high computational costs of flood inundation models which pose a barrier to high‐speed forecasting. Furthermore, most work to evaluate forecast skill has been limited to hydrologic parameters such as flood stage, flood extent, and high water marks (HWMs; e.g., Ivanov et al., 2021; Noh et al., 2019; Saleh et al., 2019; Wing et al., 2019) and has not explicitly considered direct measures of flood impacts relevant to emergency managers such as public distress and property damage. Consequently, the objectives of this study are two‐fold and are pursued in the context of Hurricane Harvey flood inundation across the Greater Houston Metropolitan Area (Houston Metro), which is one of the best‐documented flood events and the second costliest in U.S. history, after Katrina:…”

Design of Storm-Water Drainage Network for Educational Institute

“…In order to avoid the problem of flooding while considering the altered hydrology, an effective and planned stormwater drainage system is required. Furthermore, if such urban development is a coastal area, it may increase the complexity of the design of the stormwater drainage network due to the influence of the tidal cycle [8]. A stormwater drainage network is a trade-off between three main parameters, i.e., the slope of the drain, the velocity of the flow in the drain, and the cover to be provided above the crown of the drain.…”