A self-sustaining biofiltration system prevents flooding in San Francisco’s sport stadium and protects the nearby San Francisco Bay and freshwater resources from stormwater pollutants. Mark Lehnerz of Oldcastle Precast explains how.

A large construction project such as a major-league sports stadium can include significant expanses of runoff-generating hardscapes. A venue capable of seating nearly 70,000 people requires large parking areas and other impervious grounds. If rainwater can turn a football field into a muddy swamp, it can also turn a parking lot into a floodplain. Draining that area effectively and treating the runoff is a basic necessity that should be provided from the very beginning of the project, but it can present challenges.

The new stadium for the San Francisco 49ers, an American professional football team, located in Santa Clara, Calif., is a good case in point.

Read more of “Biofiltration scores big in sports stadium runoff treatment” on p. 29 in the Summer issue of World Water Stormwater Management magazine.