2026-10-14T14:39:28Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/33771610 2026-09-15T05:33:25Z category_34 portal_316 item_type_3 month_year_09_2026

Table 1_DIG-ging deeper: soil selection drives hydraulic performance in highway rain gardens.docx Wm. Alexander Osborne (24912427) Stuart J. McLelland (4970413) Mia Cole (24912430) Robert E. Thomas (7191935) Environmental Science nature based solutions rain gardens soil moisture sustainable drainage systems urban flood resilience <p>We quantitatively evaluate the performance of nature based solution (NBS) highway rain gardens developed under the Doncaster, Immingham, and Grimsby (DIG) Surface Water Resilience Project, a programme designed to reduce surface water flood risk and inform UK sustainable drainage system (SuDS) policy. Four rain gardens on a flood-prone highway in Grimsby, UK, each with an identical hybrid design combining attenuation crates with different soil media, were monitored over a full hydrological year. The study compares the hydraulic behaviour, runoff attenuation and electrical conductivity (EC) response of four soils under real world conditions: a recycled local soil, two standard engineered soils (A and B), and a premium engineered mix. Monitoring included continuous soil moisture profiling, EC as a water quality proxy, and depth sensors to assess attenuation performance. Clear differences in performance were observed between soils. The premium engineered soil transmitted water rapidly, with a 65 min rainfall to outfall lag but limited retention. The recycled soil behaved most like the natural control, providing comparatively high retention at low cost. The standard engineered soils showed intermediate responses, with Soil A maintaining consistent moisture conditions and reducing peak outfall depth by 48% while extending outflow duration by 55% relative to the premium mix, and Soil B indicating modestly greater storage. Seasonal conductivity patterns indicated solute retention differences, especially during winter salting. These findings show that no single soil performed best across all functions. Instead, soil selection should be matched to site-specific hydraulic, environmental, and sustainability priorities, supporting adaptive, evidence-based NBS design for long term urban flood resilience.</p> 2026-09-15T05:33:25Z Dataset Dataset 10.3389/fenvs.2026.1901519.s001 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Table_1_DIG-ging_deeper_soil_selection_drives_hydraulic_performance_in_highway_rain_gardens_docx/33771610 CC BY 4.0