A New Protocol for Urban Soil Investigations to Support Stormwater Management:.

A detailed soil investigation was conducted in the city of Cleveland, Ohio to determine the suitability of the soils to accommodate stormwater recharge via the use of best management practices (BMPs).  In order to accurately identify the appropriate stormwater BMP for a given area, accurate soils investigations are required.  In cities, the naturally occurring soils are often mixed with anthropogenic materials, or fill soils.  This contributes to anthropogenic soils being more heterogeneous across the landscape as compared to naturally occurring soils.  For both soil taxonomy and common land uses referenced in a traditional soil survey (agriculture, forestry, residential land development, etc.), the emphasis of a site investigation is on both the surface (“A”) and subsurface (“B”) horizons.  In an urban setting, the emphasis often is on this substratum, or “C” horizon, which is frequently the only naturally occurring soil present on site.  Due to the specific nature of this invesigatin across Cleveland (stormwater management), a deeper soil investigation (2-3 meters) was required.  This was to accommodate the potentially large stormwater flows that can occur within Cleveland.  We highlight he many unique facets of our urban soil investigation, and suggest site-specific protocols that can be used to enhance soil investigations in urban areas.