Earth and Environment Graduate Seminar

Title: Green Stormwater Infrastructure: Multifunctional Nature-Based Solutions for Urban Sustainability and Resilience by Dr. Ali Ebrahimian, Associate Professor - FIU, Dept. of Civil & Environmental Engineering Abstract: Green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) practices are nature-based, engineered systems designed to reduce stormwater runoff and improve water quality at its source while promoting urban sustainability through ecosystem services, like urban heat mitigation and improved aesthetics, and enhancing resilience to flooding and extreme weather events. This seminar overviews common urban GSI practices and the dynamics of hydrological processes, such as infiltration and evapotranspiration, in GSI, and how understanding of these processes can inform more effective GSI design and implementation. Drawing on research conducted in Pennsylvania and Florida, the seminar highlights GSI performance under different environmental conditions, particularly the challenges and opportunities of shallow groundwater in coastal urban areas such as Miami.