More than 60 percent of U.S. land has been altered by urban development and agricultural use, recent studies estimate, and urban expansion claims an additional 420,000 acres of land each year. All land use affects the environment in some way, and unmanaged development can cause unforeseen environmental damage.
In an attempt to develop a comprehensive environmental management model for watersheds, Panos Diplas, professor of civil and environmental engineering, is leading a team of 13 Virginia Tech researchers in an interdisciplinary assessment of the hydrologic, ecological, and economic effects of urban development. The project study site is the Upper Roanoke River Watershed.
"The deterioration of the Chesapeake Bay is a result of unmanaged urban and agricultural development," Diplas says. "The goal of our project is to help local governments learn how to allow for urban development while sustaining good environmental quality."
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in cooperation with the National Science Foundation, is sponsoring the three-year project, which began this spring.
The Upper Roanoke River Watershed has a drainage area of 512 square miles and includes both rural headwater areas and concentrated urban areas along the river's main stem. Located near the City of Roanoke, the watershed is experiencing significant residential and commercial development.
"A watershed is a self-contained environmental unit," says Diplas, who for several years has conducted research on environmental hydraulics, river flooding mitigation, wetlands, and other related issues. "That makes it a good area in which to learn how to manage the effects of urban development."
Diplas and colleagues in civil and biological systems engineering will develop a hydrologic and hydraulic model for assessing the effects of different forms of urbanization on the quality and quantity of both surface water and groundwater.
They will develop a model (a computer program) that can assess the environmental results of various types of land-use activities. For example, Diplas says, replacing forested land with a subdivision reduces an area's vegetative cover, which can increase flooding and levels of sediments, chemicals, and other stream pollutants.
Researchers from biology and fisheries studying the watershed's ecological components will develop procedures for predicting the responses of fish and macroinvertebrates to urbanization.
"Fish and smaller forms of stream organisms are sensitive to changes in factors such as streamflow and water quality," says Diplas. "They are excellent biological indicators of the effects of urban development. If their environment is deteriorating, eventually the effects will be felt by humans."
William Cox, professor of civil and environmental engineering, along with Leonard Shabman, professor emeritus; Darrell Bosch, professor; and Kurt Stephenson, associate professor in agriculture and applied economics, will examine the relationship between public policy and development patterns and will estimate the effects of various forms of urban development on the values of agricultural, forest, residential and commercial land. They also will make assessments of tax receipts and fiscal costs incurred by local governments as the result of urbanization.
Understanding the balance between the environmental and financial issues of urban development is crucial to local officials and planners in making decisions, says Diplas. For example, deciding whether a subdivision should be zoned for one-half-acre or one-quarter-acre lots might require consideration of the effects on both streams and the community tax base.
The Virginia Water Resources Research Center and a committee of project researchers will oversee the integration of the hydrologic, ecological, and economic models into a comprehensive model of all watershed elements. The Fifth Planning District Commission will help the Virginia Tech researchers form a panel of Roanoke-area stakeholders -- local officials, state agency personnel, and environmental groups -- to help ensure that the project reflects the interests and needs of watershed residents.
Learn more about Environmental and Water Resources Engineering at Virginia Tech.
— Written by Liz Crumbley