@article{gee_dobyns_gage_woodward_hunt_kennedy_lehr_2022, title={EVALUATING THE OCCURRENCE AND RELATIVE ABUNDANCE OF MOSQUITOES IN RAINWATER HARVESTING SYSTEMS}, volume={65}, ISSN={["2769-3287"]}, DOI={10.13031/ja.15189}, abstractNote={Highlights Rainwater harvesting systems can harbor mosquitoes and their larvae. Approximately half of sampled systems were found to contain mosquito larvae. Mosquitoes were more abundant in systems with unscreened openings and multiple inlet filters. Frequent maintenance and eliminating unscreened openings minimize mosquito presence. Abstract. Mosquitoes are associated with the spread of diseases such as the Zika and West Nile viruses. Government and health officials recommend the elimination of standing water to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes that transmit these viruses. Previous research has shown that rainwater harvesting (RWH) systems in high-rainfall regions tend to be underutilized, thereby creating a source of standing water that could potentially harbor mosquitoes and their larvae. As RWH is an important tool for conserving potable water and mitigating stormwater runoff, it is imperative to determine if these systems are contributing to the proliferation of mosquitoes and, if they are, to identify measures to prevent this. The prevalence and relative abundance of mosquitoes were investigated in 64 RWH cisterns throughout Virginia and North Carolina. Mosquito larvae captured during sampling were identified morphologically to genus and species. Of the 64 systems sampled, 47% contained mosquitoes; the predominant species found was Aedes albopictus, a potential carrier of Eastern Equine Encephalitis, LaCrosse Encephalitis, West Nile virus, and Zika virus. Systems with multiple inlet filters, unscreened storage tank openings, and/or heavy foliage in the immediate vicinity were most likely to contain mosquito larvae. Study results indicate that frequent maintenance, the elimination of unscreened tank openings, and the eradication of sources of standing water in the area surrounding a system greatly reduce the likelihood of mosquitoes proliferating in rainwater harvesting systems. Keywords: Container breeding, Mosquito, Mosquito larvae, Rainwater harvesting.}, number={6}, journal={JOURNAL OF THE ASABE}, author={Gee, Kathy DeBusk and Dobyns, Kaitlyn and Gage, Kyrsten and Woodward, Mitch and Hunt, William and Kennedy, Shawn and Lehr, David}, year={2022}, pages={1475–1487} }
 @article{winston_hunt_kennedy_merriman_chandler_brown_2013, title={Evaluation of floating treatment wetlands as retrofits to existing stormwater retention ponds}, volume={54}, ISSN={0925-8574}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/J.ECOLENG.2013.01.023}, DOI={10.1016/j.ecoleng.2013.01.023}, abstractNote={Thousands of existing wet retention ponds have been built across the United States, primarily for the mitigation of peak flow and removal of sediment. These systems struggle to mitigate soluble nutrient loads from urban watersheds. A simple retrofit for improvement of pond performance for nitrogen and phosphorus removal could become popular. Floating treatment wetlands (FTWs), one such retrofit, are a hydroponic system that provides a growing medium for hydrophytic vegetation, which obtain nutrients from the stormwater pond. Installation of FTWs does not require earth moving, eliminates the need for additional land to be dedicated to treatment, and does not detract from the required storage volume for wet ponds (because they float). To test whether FTWs reduce nutrients and sediment, two ponds in Durham, NC, were monitored pre- and post-FTW installation. At least 16 events were collected from each pond during both monitoring periods. The distinguishing characteristic between the two ponds post-retrofit was the fraction of pond surface covered by FTWs; the DOT pond and Museum ponds had 9% and 18%, respectively, of their surface area covered by FTWs. A very small fraction of N and P was taken up by wetland plants, with less than 2% and 0.2%, respectively, of plant biomass as N and P. Temperature measurements at three depths below FTWs and at the same depths in open water showed no significant difference in mean daily temperatures, suggesting little shading benefit from FTWs. The two ponds produced effluent temperatures that exceeded trout health thresholds. Both the pre- and post-FTW retrofit ponds performed well from a pollutant removal perspective. One pond had extremely low total nitrogen (TN) effluent concentrations (0.41 mg/L and 0.43 mg/L) during both pre- and post-FTW retrofit periods, respectively. Floating treatment wetlands tended to improve pollutant capture within both ponds, but not always significantly. Mean effluent concentrations of TN were reduced at the DOT pond from 1.05 mg/L to 0.61 mg/L from pre- to post-retrofit. Mean total phosphorus (TP) effluent concentrations were reduced at both wet ponds from pre- to post-retrofit [0.17 mg/L to 0.12 mg/L (DOT pond) and 0.11 mg/L to 0.05 mg/L (Museum pond)]. The post-retrofit effluent concentrations were similar to those observed for bioretention cells and constructed stormwater wetlands in North Carolina. The DOT pond showed no significant differences between pre- and post-retrofit effluent concentrations for all nine analytes. The Museum pond had a statistically significant improvement post-retrofit (when compared to the pre-retrofit period) for both TP and total suspended solids (TSS). Wetland plant root length was measured to be approximately 0.75 m, which had the benefit of stilling water flow, thereby increasing sedimentation. Results suggested that greater percent coverage of FTWs produced improved pollutant removal.}, journal={Ecological Engineering}, publisher={Elsevier BV}, author={Winston, Ryan J. and Hunt, William F. and Kennedy, Shawn G. and Merriman, Laura S. and Chandler, Jacob and Brown, David}, year={2013}, month={May}, pages={254–265} }
 @article{winston_hunt_kennedy_wright_lauffer_2012, title={Field Evaluation of Storm-Water Control Measures for Highway Runoff Treatment}, volume={138}, ISSN={["1943-7870"]}, DOI={10.1061/(asce)ee.1943-7870.0000454}, abstractNote={The thousands of kilometers of highways in North Carolina have the potential to generate large amounts of storm-water runoff. Thus, investigation of storm-water control measures (SCMs) for these somewhat unique linear catchments, where space is limited for SCM implementation, was needed. This study examined the quantity and quality of highway runoff at four sites over a 48-km stretch of Interstate 40 in the coastal plain of North Carolina. The highway had a 4-cm overlay of permeable asphalt, known as permeable friction course (PFC), which influenced the export of sediment-bound pollutants and produced median effluent concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS) of 8 mg/L, 8 mg/L, 9 mg/L, and 17 mg/L at the four sites, well below concentrations observed from standard asphalt highway runoff. Two vegetative filter strips (VFSs), two traditional dry swales, and two wetland swales were also tested for pollutant removal efficacy at the four highway research sites. The filter strips generally produced higher pollutant concentrations than the edge of pavement due to a lack of vegetative cover, substantial soil compaction, and high slopes. Total nitrogen (TN) median effluent concentrations were significantly lower for wetland swales (1.02 mg/L and 1.03 mg/L) than for dry swales (1.50 mg/L and 1.63 mg/L). TN load export appeared lower from wetland swales when compared with dry swales, potentially due to the greater number of nutrient removal mechanisms that are present in wetland swales. Maintenance of highway SCMs was shown to be extremely important, as one of the dry swales produced an effluent TSS concentration of 70 mg/L due to a head cut in the thalweg of the channel. As noted in other scientific literature, vegetative SCMs did not further reduce pollutant concentrations released by the PFC because TSS and sediment-bound pollutant concentrations seemingly were at or near irreducible concentrations. This study showed that incorporating wetland elements in the design of swales and the use of PFC should be considered by roadway designers.}, number={1}, journal={JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING}, author={Winston, Ryan J. and Hunt, William F. and Kennedy, Shawn G. and Wright, Jason D. and Lauffer, Matthew S.}, year={2012}, month={Jan}, pages={101–111} }