Assessing plant community composition in established stormwater ponds and determining relationships among vegetation and water quality

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Increased human population growth and urbanization have led to a reduction in historic hydrological processesthat minimize the intensity of stormwater surges, and an increase in waterborne contaminants that threatendrinking water supplies, ecosystem stability and diminish recreational and economic activities throughoutsouthern Ontario. Stormwater ponds are one component of a stormwater management train and are among themost common approaches to stormwater management in Ontario. The proposed project will continue acomprehensive survey of stormwater pond vegetation and its relation to water quality to better informstormwater pond design and ensure the intended functionality of these systems. Sites have been selected fromstormwater ponds located within Southern Ontario based on the availability of records related to their originaldesign, vegetation planting strategies, ongoing monitoring of water quality and accessibility. Samples of allplant species encountered will be identified and submitted to the Laurier Herbarium as permanent vouchers.Vegetation characteristics including species richness, diversity, evenness, percent cover, density, and frequencywill be quantified in addition to degree of shading by overstory and understory vegetation. Water qualitysamples will be taken from the runoff at the stormwater ponds inlet and outlet throughout the year. Watersamples will be tested for different water quality parameters as defined by the Ministry of the Environment andClimate Change (MOECC), and may include BOD, COD, TSS, pH and E. Coli. These tests will allow for adetermination of any correlation between the water quality and vegetation growth. Data analyses will: 1)investigate relationships among vegetation and stormwater pond function (improvement of water quality,habitat, etc), 2) compare vegetation patterns (community structure, species diversity, evenness, richness,incursion of invasive species and habitat suitability) among sites and among stormwater pond creationstrategies, and 3) assess the overall impact of stormwater ponds on the surrounding landscape.