Taking Root (Source: Storm Water Solutions)
By William Chandler, P.E.
Like much of the central and southern coast of the U.S., Austin, Texas, is regularly exposed to powerful storms moving inland from the Gulf or overland from the Pacific. Combined with the flat geography and underlying strata of silt and limestone, these meteorological characteristics create an environment that responds to precipitation in a way that often is dramatic, with the scarred hill country terrain serving as a reminder of the forces of erosion.
Austin’s growth has not stopped accelerating since the turn of the millennium. Thankfully, Austin leadership has long known that such relentless growth must be coupled with careful forethought as the city limits creep across previously undeveloped terrain. Not only can storm events devastate communities with inadequate infrastructure, but unchecked development can magnify the threats posed by these storms by disrupting the equilibrium of local riparian ecosystems
