PROJECT HIGHTLIGHT
This research quantifies how sea level rise and groundwater flooding threaten critical wastewater and transit infrastructure in vulnerable coastal communities, providing field data to support long-term planning and mitigation efforts.
PROJECT SUMMARY
Sea level rise poses increasing threats to essential urban infrastructure, particularly in socioeconomically disadvantaged coastal communities. As flooding intensifies, wastewater systems face damage to pipes and pumps, leading to sanitary sewer overflows and pipe backflows that create serious public health risks and environmental damage. Transit infrastructure also suffers regular flooding that causes delays and structural damage. With capital improvement projects funded over 30-year cycles, detailed field measurements are essential to calculate projected sea level rise impacts and guide infrastructure investments.
The research team is studying two areas along the San Francisco Bay margin that experience higher flood frequencies than nearby communities. These locations represent the critical intersection of socioeconomically disadvantaged areas with high flood vulnerability and essential wastewater and transit infrastructure that may face disproportionate impacts from rising seas. The research focuses on quantifying, modeling and communicating infrastructure vulnerabilities at geographic and time scales appropriate for local planning and mitigation efforts.
So far, the team has made significant progress in understanding how underground infrastructure influences flooding patterns. Groundwater monitoring wells installed in summer 2022 revealed that proximity to sewer infrastructure dramatically affects flooding responses. Wells located within 1.1 meters of sewer pipes showed groundwater level changes 1.5 times greater during high tides and up to 1.9 times greater during major storm events compared to control wells. These findings confirm that sewer utility trenches act as preferential flow paths that accelerate both sideways groundwater movement and vertical rise during extreme weather and tidal events. Geochemical analysis has also identified areas of saltwater intrusion and locations vulnerable to aggressive microbial corrosion, providing crucial information for infrastructure planning in coastal communities facing sea level rise.
2022 California Sea Grant Graduate Research Fellowship Webinar Presentation - June 4, 2024