Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 75.35
Liaison Megan Litke
Submission Date March 30, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

American University
OP-27: Rainwater Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Amit Paul
Sustainability Coordinator
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution use Low Impact Development (LID) practices as a matter of policy or standard practice to reduce rainwater/stormwater runoff volume and improve outgoing water quality for new construction, major renovation, and other projects?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s Low Impact Development (LID) practices:

1. A cistern on the roof of the School of International Service (SIS) collects water for flushing toilets within the building.
2. Two bioretention ponds at SIS collect and slow stormwater runoff on either side of the building before filtering it and ultimately allowing excess water to enter the stormwater system through a Bay Saver.
3. Green roofs now span 9 buildings.
4. A rain garden in front of the Kogod Building captures run-off rain water and uses a Bay Saver. A rain garden outside of the Centennial Parking garage captures runoff. Parking has been removed between Clark and Roper Halls and replaced with rain gardens. There is also a rain garden behind McKinley.
5. Pervious pavement is installed in a walk way on the main campus near Kay Spiritual Center.
6. A cistern in Cassell is used to collect water for irrigation.


Has the institution adopted a rainwater/stormwater management policy, plan, or strategies that mitigate the rainwater runoff impacts of ongoing campus operations through the use of green infrastructure? :
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s rainwater/stormwater management policy, plan, and/or strategies for ongoing campus operations:

The university uses a variety of strategies to deal with rainwater on campus. The university has rain gardens, cisterns, and bioretention ponds in place to help manage rainwater. Additionally, the university attempts to reduce impermeable hardscape altogether and use pervious pavers when possible.


A brief description of any rainwater harvesting employed by the institution:

The School of International Service building collects all rainwater from the roof and stores it in a cistern used as graywater (toilet flushing) in the building. A cistern in Cassell is used to collect water for irrigation.


Rainwater harvested directly and stored/used by the institution, performance year:
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A brief description of any rainwater filtering systems employed by the institution to treat water prior to release:

Two bioretention ponds flank the School of International Service. These ponds collect and slow stormwater runoff on either side of the building before filtering it and ultimately allowing excess water to enter the stormwater system through a Bay Saver.


A brief description of any living or vegetated roofs on campus:

American University has over 40,000 square feet of green roofs spanning nine university buildings.


A brief description of any porous (i.e. permeable) paving employed by the institution:

A walkway with pervious paving is in use near the Kay Spiritual Center.


A brief description of any downspout disconnection employed by the institution:

There are currently no downspout connections employed by the institution.


A brief description of any rain gardens on campus:

There are currently rain gardens near the Kogod School of Business and McKinley buildings.


A brief description of any stormwater retention and/or detention ponds employed by the institution:

Two bioretention ponds flank the School of International Service.


A brief description of any bioswales on campus (vegetated, compost or stone):
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A brief description of any other rainwater management technologies or strategies employed by the institution:
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The website URL where information about the institution’s rainwater management initiatives, plan or policy is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

More information regarding the landscaping features can be found at: http://www.american.edu/finance/facilities/Arboretum.cfm


More information regarding the landscaping features can be found at: http://www.american.edu/finance/facilities/Arboretum.cfm

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.