We thank the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs for supporting this research, and Learning & Technology Services for printing this poster. Where Does the Rain Water Go? Drake Bortolameolli | Environmental Studies 310: Sustainable Cities A STUDY OF E AU C LAIRE C ENTRAL B USINESS D ISTRICTS ; S EARCH FOR W ASTE B ASKETS AND S TORM D RAINS Results Conclusion Acknowledgments Methods Using the City of Eau Claire’s Zoning Map, I found the Central Business Districts in the city (Figure 1). I divided the Central Business Districts (CBD) up into four main study areas (Figure 2). The first study area had a western boundary of the Chippewa River, an eastern boundary of South Dewey Street, a northern boundary of the Eau Claire River, and a southern boundary of Earl Street (Figure 3). The second study area was just north of the first study area, with a northern boundary of East Madison Street, a western boundary of the Chippewa River, a southern boundary of the Eau Claire River, and a western boundary of North Dewey Street (Figure 4). The third study area was just west of study area two. With a western boundary the Chippewa River State trail, extending north to West Madison Street. The northern boundary was West Madison Street, the eastern boundary was the Chippewa River, and finally the southern boundary was Fulton Street (Figure 5). Lastly the fourth study area was a section of Water Street, and Chippewa River State Trail between 2 nd Ave and 6 th Ave (Figure 6). Using a GPS unit, pen and paper maps, and a bicycle, I went through all the areas stopping at every corner and recording the locations where the storm drains, recycling cans, and garbage cans were located. After compiling all the data from the four study areas, the results were entered into ArcMap to create a geospatial map showing the locations of the study areas as well as where the storm drains, garbage cans, and recycling cans are located. River Dumping Introduction Every city faces the issues of pollution, from both nature as well as the people living in the city. Storm water runoff is one source of pollution. The water from heavy rain, needs somewhere to go since it cannot be absorbed into the concrete. In order to combat this, many cities spend millions of dollars on storm drains and piping projects in built up sections of the city. These drains can either empty into piping which will direct the water to water treatment plants, or dump it directly into a body of water. Eau Claire has three major water ways these pipes dump into; The Chippewa River, Eau Claire River, and Half Moon Lake. As for pollution, in order to keep garbage off the streets, garbage cans have been popping up in many high traffic areas. Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Study Area 3 is surrounded by two bodies of water, Half Moon Lake to the west, and the Chippewa River to the east. Both bodies of water have drainage pipes dumping rain water into them. As for trash and recycling cans, there were only 4 trash cans in this study area, which is the least of the four areas. Intersections have large clusters of storm drains, this is because the large terrain changes in this study area. Study Area 4 is right on the Chippewa River. A large bar and restaurant area, results in multiple trash cans at every corner. Several drains in the area are marked that they dump directly into the Chippewa River. Study Area 2 has a park at the confluence of the Eau Claire and Chippewa Rivers. This park results in many trash cans in a small space. Not as inclined as study area 3, this study area still has large terrain changes, resulting in the need for excess amounts of storm drains. Study Area 1 is considered the old heart of Eau Claire. New construction projects are trying to rebuild the space to make it once again attractive to the people of Eau Claire. As a result for the expected increase in traffic, trash cans are lined all up and down South Barstow Street. Within a four block stretch of roadway, there is 14 garbage cans. Many areas in the city have several postings on the storm drains about how the drains empty directly into a water way. Since the three major water ways in Eau Claire, Eau Claire River, Chippewa River, and Half Moon Lake all have such high recreational usages, these pipes dumping the water are somewhat concealed (Figure 7). The Luther Midelfort Hospital has a parking lot drainage area that has to pass under the Chippewa River State Trail, in order to cover the hideous pipe, a layer of rocks was installed over the area, in order to conceal the pipe from the trail users (Figure 8). Support for the research was through the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, Watershed department, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs, the Learning Technology Services for printing the poster, and ESRI products ArcGIS Online and ArcMap 10.2 for Geographic Information System products to make creating this maps possible. Eau Claire combats the excess amounts of rain it could receive by installing storm drains in areas where water flows to more frequently, i.e. lower lying areas. Many of the drains direct the water directly into the three major bodies of water surrounding the Central Business District. Pollution in Eau Claire is still an issue, but the garbage cans are helping, and during my biking around to collect data, garbage was not something that I saw frequently. Figure 7 Figure 8