Retention basin

Artificial pond for stormwater runoff

Not to be confused with Nuclear retention basin.

Trounce Pond, a retention basin landscaped with natural grassland plants, in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada The Corporate Park retention basin in Stafford, Texas, United States A Retention pond guarded by concrete wall and surrounded by Taro plants in an Semi-urban indian Town Retention basin in Pinnau, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany

A retention basin, sometimes called a retention pond, wet detention basin, or storm water management pond (SWMP), is an artificial pond with vegetation around the perimeter and a permanent pool of water in its design.[1][2][3] It is used to manage stormwater runoff, for protection against flooding, for erosion control, and to serve as an artificial wetland and improve the water quality in adjacent bodies of water.

It is distinguished from a detention basin, sometimes called a "dry pond", which temporarily stores water after a storm, but eventually empties out at a controlled rate to a downstream water body. It also differs from an infiltration basin which is designed to direct stormwater to groundwater through permeable soils.

Wet ponds are frequently used for water quality improvement, groundwater recharge, flood protection, aesthetic improvement, or any combination of these. Sometimes they act as a replacement for the natural absorption of a forest or other natural process that was lost when an area is developed. As such, these structures are designed to blend into neighborhoods and viewed as an amenity.[4]

In urban areas, impervious surfaces (roofs, roads) reduce the time spent by rainfall before entering into the stormwater drainage system. If left unchecked, this will cause widespread flooding downstream. The function of a stormwater pond is to contain this surge and release it slowly. This slow release mitigates the size and intensity of storm-induced flooding on downstream receiving waters. Stormwater ponds also collect suspended sediments, which are often found in high concentrations in stormwater water due to upstream construction and sand applications to roadways.

## Design features

[edit]

Storm water is typically channeled to a retention basin through a system of street and/or parking lot storm drains, and a network of drain channels or underground pipes. The basins are designed to allow relatively large flows of water to enter, but discharges to receiving waters are limited by outlet structures that function only during very large storm events.

Retention ponds are often landscaped with a variety of grasses, shrubs, and/or aquatic plants to provide bank stability and aesthetic benefits. Vegetation also provides water quality benefits by removing soluble nutrients through uptake.[5] In some areas the ponds can attract nuisance types of wildlife like ducks or Canada geese, particularly where there is minimal landscaping and grasses are mowed. This reduces the ability of foxes, coyotes, and other predators to approach their prey unseen. Such predators tend to hide in the cattails and other tall, thick grass surrounding natural water features.

Proper depth of retention ponds is important for removal of pollutants and maintenance of fish populations. Urban fishing continues to be one of the fastest growing fishing segments as new suburban neighborhoods are built around these aquatic areas.[citation needed]

## See also

[edit]

* Geography portal

* Balancing lake (UK)
* Nationwide Urban Runoff Program (NURP) – US stormwater research project
* Settling basin – for treating agricultural and industrial wastewater
* Stream restoration
* Surface runoff
* Sustainable drainage system
* Urban runoff
* Water pollution
* Jonenbach flood retention basin

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Water Environment Federation, Alexandria, VA; and American Society of Civil Engineers, Reston, VA. "Urban Runoff Quality Management." WEF Manual of Practice No. 23; ASCE Manual and Report on Engineering Practice No. 87. 1998. ISBN 1-57278-039-8. Chapter 5.
2. ^ U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Washington, D.C. "Preliminary Data Summary of Urban Storm Water Best Management Practices." Chapter 5. August 1999. Document No. EPA-821-R-99-012.
3. ^ University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. "If you build it they will come: Frogs flourish in humanmade ponds." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 27 August 2015. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/08/150827154644.htm>.
4. ^ Mississippi State University. College of Engineering. Stormwater Retention Basins. Chapter 4, Best Management Practices. Archived 2008-04-24 at the Wayback Machine
5. ^ Urban Drainage & Flood Control District, Denver, CO. Urban Storm Drainage Criteria Manual. Volume 3, Structural BMPs. Archived 2009-07-31 at the Wayback Machine

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Retention basin.

* Virginia retention basin standards Archived 2006-02-11 at the Wayback Machine
* Detention vs. retention – Harris County, Texas Flood Control District
* Stormwater Ecological Enhancement Project Archived 2005-10-25 at the Wayback Machine – University of Florida
* The use of retention ponds in residential settings
* International Stormwater BMP Database – Performance Data on Urban Stormwater BMPs

* v
* t
* e

Ponds, pools, and puddles

Ponds|

* Ash pond
* Balancing lake
* Ballast pond
* Beel
* Cooling pond
* Detention pond
* Dew pond
* Evaporation pond
* Facultative lagoon
* Garden pond
* Ice pond
* Immersion pond
* Infiltration basin
* Kettle pond
* Log pond
* Melt pond
* Mill pond
* Polishing pond
* Raceway pond
* Retention pond
* Sag pond
* Salt evaporation pond
* Sediment pond
* Settling pond
* Solar pond
* Stepwell
* Stew pond
* Tailings
* Tarn
* Waste pond
* Waste stabilization pond

Pools|

* Anchialine pool
* Brine pool
* Infinity pool
* Natural pool
* Ocean pool
* Plunge pool
* Reflecting pool
* Spent fuel pool
* Stream pool
* Swimming pool
* Tide pool
* Vernal pool

Puddles|

* Bird bath
* Coffee ring effect
* Puddle
* Puddles on a surface
* Seep puddle

Biome|

* Beaver dam
* Duck pond
* Fish pond
* Goldfish pond
* Koi pond

Ecosystems|

* Aquatic ecosystem
* Freshwater ecosystem
* Lake ecosystem

Related|

* Aerated lagoon
* Bakki shower
* Big fish–little pond
* Body of water
* Constructed wetland
* Full pond
* Hydric soil
* Phytotelma
* Pond of Abundance
* Pond liner
* Ponding
* Puddle (M C Escher)
* Spring
* Swimming hole
* Water aeration
* Water garden
* Water Lilies (Monet)
* Well

* v
* t
* e

Rivers, streams and springs

Rivers
(lists)|

* Alluvial river
* Braided river
* Blackwater river
* Channel
* Channel pattern
* Channel types
* Confluence
* Distributary
* Drainage basin
* Subterranean river
* River bifurcation
* River ecosystem
* River source
* Tributary

Streams|

* Arroyo
* Beck
* Bourne
* Burn
* Chalk stream
* Coulee
* Current
* Stream bed
* Stream channel
* Streamflow
* Stream gradient
* Stream pool
* Perennial stream
* Winterbourne

Springs
(list)|

* Estavelle/Inversac
* Geyser
* Holy well
* Hot spring
* list
* list in the US
* Karst spring
* list
* Mineral spring
* Ponor
* Rhythmic spring
* Spring horizon

Sedimentary processes
and erosion|

* Abrasion
* Anabranch
* Aggradation
* Armor
* Bed load
* Bed material load
* Granular flow
* Debris flow
* Deposition
* Dissolved load
* Downcutting
* Erosion
* Headward erosion
* Knickpoint
* Palaeochannel
* Progradation
* Retrogradation
* Saltation
* Secondary flow
* Sediment transport
* Suspended load
* Wash load
* Water gap

Fluvial landforms|

* Ait
* Alluvial fan
* Antecedent drainage stream
* Avulsion
* Bank
* Bar
* Bayou
* Billabong
* Canyon
* Chine
* Cut bank
* Estuary
* Floating island
* Fluvial terrace
* Gill
* Gulch
* Gully
* Glen
* Meander scar
* Mouth bar
* Oxbow lake
* Riffle-pool sequence
* Point bar
* Ravine
* Rill
* River island
* Rock-cut basin
* Sedimentary basin
* Sedimentary structures
* Strath
* Thalweg
* River valley
* Wadi

Fluvial flow|

* Helicoidal flow
* International scale of river difficulty
* Log jam
* Meander
* Plunge pool
* Rapids
* Riffle
* Shoal
* Stream capture
* Waterfall
* list of waterfalls
* Whitewater

Surface runoff|

* Agricultural wastewater
* First flush
* Urban runoff

Floods and stormwater|

* 100-year flood
* Crevasse splay
* Flash flood
* Flood
* Urban flooding
* Non-water flood
* Flood barrier
* Flood control
* Flood forecasting
* Flood-meadow
* Floodplain
* Flood pulse concept
* Flooded grasslands and savannas
* Inundation
* Storm Water Management Model
* Return period

Point source pollution|

* Effluent
* Industrial wastewater
* Sewage

River measurement
and modelling|

* Baer's law
* Baseflow
* Bradshaw model
* Discharge (hydrology)
* Drainage density
* Exner equation
* Groundwater model
* Hack's law
* Hjulström curve
* Hydrograph
* Hydrological model
* Hydrological transport model
* Infiltration (hydrology)
* Main stem
* Playfair's law
* Relief ratio
* River Continuum Concept
* Rouse number
* Runoff curve number
* Runoff model (reservoir)
* Stream gauge
* Universal Soil Loss Equation
* WAFLEX
* Wetted perimeter
* Volumetric flow rate

River engineering|

* Aqueduct
* Balancing lake
* Canal
* Check dam
* Dam
* Drop structure
* Daylighting
* Detention basin
* Erosion control
* Fish ladder
* Floodplain restoration
* Flume
* Infiltration basin
* Leat
* Levee
* River morphology
* Retention basin
* Revetment
* Riparian-zone restoration
* Stream restoration
* Weir

River sports|

* Canyoning
* Fly fishing
* Rafting
* River surfing
* Riverboarding
* Stone skipping
* Triathlon
* Whitewater canoeing
* Whitewater kayaking
* Whitewater slalom

Related|

* Aquifer
* Aquatic toxicology
* Body of water
* Hydraulic civilization
* Limnology
* Riparian zone
* River valley civilization
* River cruise
* Sacred waters
* Surface water
* Wild river

* Rivers by length
* Rivers by discharge rate
* Drainage basins
* Whitewater rivers
* Flash floods
* River name etymologies
* Countries without rivers

* v
* t
* e

Stormwater management structures

Treatment / Containment|

* Biofilter
* Constructed wetland
* Detention basin
* Green roof
* Media filter
* Oil-grit separator
* Retention basin
* Stormwater detention vault
* Stormwater harvesting

Flow control|

* Continuous monitoring and adaptive control
* Flood control channel
* Flow control structure
* Hydrodynamic separator
* Storm drain

Infiltration|

* Bioretention
* Bioswale
* Dry well
* Infiltration basin
* Percolation trench
* Permeable paving
* Semicircular bund

Authority control databases: National |

* Germany
* United States
* Israel

|

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template