Staying dry with rising tides – case study miami beach inc2

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STAYING DRY WITH RISING TIDES – CASE STUDY MIAMI
BEACH
Author: Kerry Olsson, Marketing Director, Wapro AB

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ABSTRACT
The City of Miami Beach, Florida, USA is a beautiful resort community nestled between the Atlantic
Ocean and Biscayne Bay. Miami Beach is built on natural and man-made barrier islands.
Infrastructure which ensures residents and tourists in Miami Beach aren’t regularly flooded by sea water
is often taken for granted however with a changing climate it has become evident to residents that
there are issues that need to be dealt with.
Much of the system that transports stormwater directly to the sea was built just a few centimeters to
one to two meters above sea level. Over the years these outlet structures have settled, and sea levels
have risen, often causing seawater to flow into the stormwater system.
Overfilled stormwater systems cause seawater to push up onto streets as well as residential and
commercial properties causing blocked roads, inconvenienced pedestrians, closed businesses, and
damaged homes.
A team of scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Potsdam, Germany
has detected a clear upward trend in the past few decades toward more unprecedented daily
rainfall events. The institute found that these once anomalous events have increased in frequency 24
percent in central and eastern US1.
Miami Beach is spending more than US$500 million in infrastructure to brace for the scientific projection
that the sea level will rise 1.5m by the turn of the century. This paper will present issues surrounding
aging infrastructure, and solutions put in place during phase 1 & 2 of this monumental project
exhibiting the success of the project and potential issues surrounding trying to flood-proof a city.
1 Jayalakshmi K - Potsdam Institute research links record-breaking daily rainfall to global warming

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Flooded streets during sunny weather caused by high tides flooding the stormwater system.

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1 Introduction
Water management is one of the greatest challenges Southeast Florida faces as sea level rises.
During wet periods, the system discharges high volumes of rainfall runoff through the canal network to
minimize potential flood impact to both developed and natural areas. Conversely the system retains
water during dry periods to make it available for man-made and natural system supplemental water
needs. Water levels in the regional system of canals and the Water Conservation Areas are maintained
to recharge the underground freshwater aquifers.
2 Location
Miami Beach is located on a variety of natural and man-made barrier islands between the Atlantic
Ocean and Biscayne Bay, in Southeast Florida. It has a total land area of approximately 48km2 and is
home to 91,000 people.
It is connected to the neighbouring City of Miami by a series of long bridges.

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The highest point of Miami Beach is actually the beach, and that is only 11.41ft (3.47m) Above
Mean Sea Level (AMSL).
Parts of the western side of South Beach are at virtually level with normal high tide, with the entire city
averaging only 4.2ft (1.3m) Above Mean Sea Level (AMSL).
With forecast sea level rises of up to a metre over the next 20 – 30 years, stormwater management is
one of the greatest challenges Southeast Florida faces in the coming years.
Graphic courtesy of: http://interactive.fusion.net/pumpit/
Approximate height above sea level across Miami Beach

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3 Background

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The central and Southern Florida Project for Flood Control and other Purposes (C&SF Project), was
authorized by Congress in 1948 at the request of the State of Florida. Primary objectives of the project
are:
-Flood Control
-Water Supply
-Prevention of saltwater intrusion
-Environmental Preservation
The water management system consists of canals, levees gated spillways, pumping stations and
surface water impoundments. All of which were constructed by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers
between 1950 and 1970. (http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015).
Traditional sea level rise and storm mitigation measures including sea walls and dykes, such as those in
the Netherlands and New Orleans, may not work in South Florida due to the porous nature of the
ground and limestone beneath the surface.
3.1 THREE-TIERED SYSTEM
The primary canal system is managed at a regional level by the State of Florida, federal interests in the
system are managed by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers. The secondary system is managed by local
governments, such as cities, counties or special taxing districts. The secondary system accept runoff
from individual residential communities or commercial/agricultural areas and convey that water to the
primary canal system. The smallest subdivision, system of drainage ditches, swales, storm sewers and
water detention ponds that are owned and maintained by private land owners, home owner
associations, etc. These community-based systems not only retain water to avoid serious flooding, but
they also provide a source of groundwater recharge and support supplemental irrigation during dry
periods.

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There are two major roles of the Primary Canals.
1. To remove excess rainfall runoff from urban and agricultural areas to minimize impact from
flooding.
2. Recharge groundwater. Water levels in the canals are raised in dry times, when there is low risk
of heavy rains.
(http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015)
During wet periods, the stormwater system discharges high volumes of rainfall runoff through the canal
network to minimize potential flood impact to both developed and natural areas. Conversely the
system retains water during dry periods to make it available for man-made and natural system
supplemental water needs. Water levels in the regional system of canals and the Water Conservation
Areas are maintained to recharge the underground freshwater aquifers.
All levels of the system have a part to play in these functions.

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These controls were needed as the South Florida area developed at a rapid pace after the Second
World War. Many of the new residents and tourists were ex-servicemen that had been through the
numerous training camps in the area during World War 2.

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The canals are still a common means of transport for people and produce. Although the transport and
surroundings have certainly changed.

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4 Origin of Problem
Most of Florida was planned in the 1940-50s. The planners expected a rise in tourism in the post-war era
and aimed to reclaim vast submerged land. Research and investment on stormwater management
gained impetus in the United States after the 1972 enactment of the federal Water Act, five regional
water management districts were initiated, which had authority to regulate stormwater management
systems for new development.
Fig 1. Assumed urban areas and now! Source: (http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015)

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These systems were intended to deal with increased rainfall runoff originating from impervious surfaces
in new developments mainly by constructing storage ponds to attenuate flood flows. To estimate
runoff capacity the single-event approach is commonly used in the United States. Storm event of
specified return interval and duration, 24h or 48h durations are commonly used to calculate
stormwater quantity and quality in management operations. (California Regional Water Quality
Control Board 2014).
With rising sea levels due to the change in global climate, south Florida will become more and more
susceptible to a wide variety of negative effects, primarily due to its very low topographic elevation.
Sea level has risen about 200 mm (8’’) the last 100 years. (http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015). As a result, the
water management system has become under dimensioned.
On top of all this, Miami Beach must contend with a fairly new phenomenon that has come to be
known locally as “sunny-day flooding”, in which Alton Road and its neighbouring streets are awash in
water even when no rain has fallen. This is a consequence of southeast Florida’s geology. Unlike, say,
the island of Manhattan, whose bedrock is composed of hard, relatively impermeable marble, granite,
and schist, Miami Beach and its neighbouring towns sit upon a foundation of porous limestone.
When the tides are at or nearing their seasonal highs—the highest, which occur in March and October,
are known as king tides—seawater surges inward from the bay and the ocean, bubbling up through
the limestone and infiltrating the sewer system. The very drains and gutters built to channel
water off the streets function in reverse, becoming the conduits through which water gushes onto the
streets.

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Fig 2. Common sights in the Miami area when high tides occur in combination with higher sea levels.
The control of discharge water quality, known as an allowable discharge, is accomplished by
calculations that determine the size of lakes and ponds needed for a water control structure that
meters the water flow volume to a determined particulate range of water levels in the water
management system. Stormwater (or storm runoff) is a major source of water-quality degradation
[(United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 2004); (Shaver, 2007)] and poses flood
hazards in urban areas (Damodaram, 2013).

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Drivers splash through saltwater caused by annual high tides between Fifth and Eighth streets on West
Avenue in Miami Beach on Oct. 7, 2010. MIAMI HERALD

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5 Solutions
There are several attempts to map out the vulnerability of the coastal areas, using down-scaled
climate models with historical data to evaluate the extent to which climate change may damage or
harm a system. Mapping of these vulnerabilities helps determine which areas are most susceptible to
flooding, providing visuals or stakeholder engagement and assessing next steps to reduce current and
future risk.
In the City of Miami Beach a comprehensive Stormwater Management Master Plan (SWMMP) has
been put in place in order to evaluate and update its stormwater management practices and
infrastructure. The plan is based on comprehensive data collection of rain data and tidal data from
gauges in pre-existing monitoring wells. The SWMMP is a long-term planning document that provides
guidance for the upgrades to the City’s stormwater infrastructure performance improvements for the
next 50 years. The plan takes into consideration sea level rise as well as how infrastructure is designed
to handle water from storms and tidal waters that enter the system when the tides are higher than the
outfalls. The plan includes installing approximately 60 pumps as well as back flow preventers.
(http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015). The cost of US$50m for these systems may appear high, however when
you consider that there is an estimated $400 Billion worth of built environment that requires protection,
it could be seen as a good investment.

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City of Miami Beach, Fla., Mayor Philip Levine, left, addresses officials and members of the media, as
workers prepare to install part of a new storm water pump station, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2014 in Miami
Beach. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

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This new system collects flood waters, screens out large debris like plastic bottles and pumps it back
out into Biscayne Bay through one-way valves that keep rising Biscayne Bay waters from flooding
drainage pipes. The plan also calls for raising seawalls, most of which are on private property, and
raising some roads.
The first new pumps were installed in 2014 -2015 in some of the city’s worst hot spots and they have
kept roads dry through a first round of fall tides.

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An energy dissipater, seen here at 14th Street and West Avenue in Miami Beach on Monday, Oct. 6,
2014, is the last part of the water removal process. Water moves from street level into the bay, having
gone through the pumping station, which is underground. Walter Michot Miami Herald Staff
Recent groundwater studies by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have revealed some interesting
results specific to the response of the surficial aquifer in Miami-Dade County associated with sea level
rise. The increase in groundwater levels associated with rising sea level will be greater along the
coastal fringe than in inland areas.
The Biscayne aquifer underlies Miami Beach to a depth of approximately 200 feet or more (USGS,
2014). The groundwater in the Biscayne aquifer is unconfined and will likely fluctuate in direct response
to variations from precipitation and sea level rise.

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This fluctuation occurs as the underlying ground consisting of porous limestone which allows water to
flow freely.
As means to increase storm water runoff capacity, vertical wells have been installed in several
locations throughout Southern Florida. The vertical wells were meant to discharge storm water into the
ground water table but with a risen sea water level the increased pressure from the sea water elevates
the ground water. A reversal of flow in the vertical wells means water comes up through the wells into
the storm water system and floods the streets. This is occurring today.

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To mitigate the flooding WaStop inline check valves have been installed in some locations allowing
storm water to recharge the ground water and preventing ground water flooding the surface area
through the vertical wells.

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Fig 3. Installation of WaStop check valves in vertical wells to stop flooding of streets.

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So far during 2014 and 2015, check valves have been installed into 2 vertical wells and about 400
normal outfall pipes in the Miami beach stormwater system.
WasStop inline check valves have a pulsating flow which allows sediment and debris to pass
through, making clogs and costly maintenance virtually non-existent. At the same time as
providing 100% secure seal against backflow – even in low pressure events. With its market
leading low headloss the WaStop inline check valve allows the maximum flow through the valve
ensuring that stormwater is removed from the streets quickly and without hinderance.
Since the installations in Miami beach other coastal communities such as Delray Beach, Boynton
Beach, and Hollywood (Florida) have expressed an interest in WaStop check valves. There is no
other easy solution to the issues.
Conclusion
With rising sea levels increasing ground water levels and climate change causing more frequent storm
events, flooding is now common event. The inevitability and the massive scale of the problem will
demand for actions both short term and long term. Solutions are pumping stations ‘lifting’ storm water
discharging it into the sea in case of both high tide and rain. Another solution is installing check valves.
This ensures that the system only needs to deal with storm water and is not inundated with seawater or
ground water that has infiltrated into the system. This creates a larger retention capacity in the existing
network. Both solutions increase the capacity of the storm water management system. Increasing
storage capacity or elevation of infrastructure are other potential solutions, there is no one-size fits all
solution to a growing problem.

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For more information contact Wapro
USA
Worldwide

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References
Damodaram, C. a. Z. E. M., 2013. Simulation-optimization approach to design low-impact
development for managin peak flow alteration in urbanizing watersheds, u.o.: J. Water Resour. Plann.
Manage.,.
http://www.iscvt.org/, 2015. Regional Impacts of Climate Change and Issues for Stormwater
Management, Miami: Southeast Florida Reginoal Climate Change Compact.
Shaver, E. H. R. S. J. M. C. a. R. G., 2007. Fundamentals of urban runoff management: Technical and
institutional, Madison,: North American Lake Management Society.
United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 2004. Water quality standards for coastal and
Great Lakes, u.o.: Fed. Regist.

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