A Decision Support Matrix for Water Quality Based Stormwater Management

Extreme weather events and climate change are stressing urban stormwater systems beyond their capacity, posing potential threat to both the built and natural environments. This paper aims to contribute to risk mitigation through evaluating the feasibility of using a decision support matrix for developing an e-monitoring system for stormwater quantity and quality. The decision support matrix used in the design of the e-monitoring system was created using data from previous water quality research and it assumes that water quality is influenced by the characteristics of the watershed. This premise was put to the test during an investigation of water quality across the catchment of the pilot site in Viimsi Parish, Estonia. The comparison of the developed matrix and the sampling results revealed that the assumed relationships do not hold on a small catchment and that there is a need for further validation of relationships between surrogate and traditional water quality parameters.