Call For Papers

StormCon is now accepting abstract submissions for the ’08 conference.

The abstract submission deadline is Wednesday, December 5, 2007. You may submit your abstract by clicking here.

Presentations are 30 minutes each, including a question-and-answer period.

If your abstract is accepted, you will be notified by e-mail and your conference paper will be due Monday, March 17, 2008.

Presenters receive a discount on the price of full-day, two-day, and one-day registration packages. Please note: Badges will be checked at the door. If you are not a registered attendee, you may be denied access to sessions other than the one in which you are presenting. Because seating is limited this policy is to ensure that there is guaranteed seating for all attendees who have registered.

Abstracts promoting proprietary products or companies will not be accepted as part of the StormCon conference program.

New for ’08
The ’08 program will feature two construction tracks: The Construction Site and Stormwater: BMPs and The Construction Site and Stormwater: Compliance.

There are also new and expanded focus areas within existing tracks, as highlighted below.

StormCon Tracks

BMP Case Studies

his track presents examples of how structural and nonstructural best management practices are being used–with case studies and performance data–including combinations of BMPs to achieve water-quality goals.

Presentations must not promote or endorse any proprietary BMP, technology, or company, nor should they simply describe the features of a product; however, examples of BMP installations with data on the effectiveness of a particular system will be considered. Topics in this track include:

• Filtration systems
• Retention and detention systems
• Advanced applications and treatment trains
• Post-construction BMPs
• EXPANDED: Urban retrofitting and repair
• EXPANDED: Maintenance of BMPs
• EXPANDED: Regional focus: BMPs for semi-arid climates, snow country, and hurricane-prone areas
• NEW: Coastal issues and BMPs
• NEW: Climate change and BMPs: Local adaptation strategies

The Construction Site and Stormwater (Two related tracks)

These two tracks deal with all aspects of stormwater management on the construction site. The Compliance track focuses on planning and documentation, particularly for sites covered under an NPDES Phase II permit. The BMPs track focuses on specific techniques and practices to prevent erosion and sedimentation and contain stormwater runoff onsite.

The Construction Site and Stormwater: Compliance

• Developing the stormwater pollution prevention plan
• Documenting and photographing your site
• Site-inspection practices
• Specific requirements for residential, commercial, and industrial sites
• Large-scale compliance programs
• Special issues for ports, airports, and other facilities

The Construction Site and Stormwater: BMPs

• Erosion and sediment control practices
• Choosing BMPs for the construction site
• BMP installation
• Storm drain and inlet protection
• Inspection and maintenance of onsite BMPs

Low-Impact Development

Low-impact development strives to maintain or mimic the predevelopment hydrology of a site by infiltrating, storing, filtering, and evaporating stormwater runoff rather than moving it offsite to a centralized stormwater system. This track deals with LID techniques, used either as an overall site-design philosophy or in conjunction with conventional stormwater management practices. Areas of focus include:

• Infiltration and bioretention practices
• Rain gardens
• Green roofs
• Porous pavement
• Smart Growth practices
• Integrated landscape design
• NEW: LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) stormwater techniques
• Urban forestry
• Rainwater harvesting and stormwater reuse
• Riparian and wetland restoration as functional BMPs

Research & Testing of BMPs/Technical Issues

his technical track deals with methods for testing the effectiveness of best management practices and comparing different BMPs, as well as with stormwater BMPs for specific applications. It also includes discussion of topics and trends in stormwater research, such as testing protocols, standards for measuring the effectiveness of BMPs, and pollutant characterization studies.

Topics in this track include:

• Performance standards and testing protocols
• Evaluating BMP performance
• BMPs for infill and redevelopment areas
• Treating highway runoff
• Characterizing pollutant loads
• Fate and transport of pollutants

Please note that we are not looking for descriptions of technologies or BMPs and how they work without supporting performance data. If your presentation deals with one or more BMPs, especially with proprietary systems, your abstract must indicate what supporting data the presentation will include.

Stormwater Program Management

This track covers many aspects to managing a successful municipal or industry-specific stormwater program: finding sources of funding; communicating with the public, elected officials, the development community, and other government agencies; and, in many communities, meeting the NPDES Phase II minimum control measures. Focus areas include:

• Strategies for meeting NPDES permit requirements
• Building public education and outreach programs
• Funding options for stormwater programs
• Stormwater utilities
• Finding, training, and keeping the right personnel
• Hiring and working with consultants
• Illicit discharge detection programs
• Planning, policy-making, and Smart Growth options
• Municipal good housekeeping practices

Water-Quality Monitoring

This track focuses on water-quality assessment, monitoring and sampling techniques, and modeling practices:

• Watershed assessments
• Determining pollutant loadings
• Developing total maximum daily loads
• Effective water-quality modeling
• Sampling tools and techniques
• Inventorying stormwater facilities
• Bacterial detection and identification techniques

Who Should Submit an Abstract?
Please note that abstracts promoting proprietary products or companies will not be accepted as part of the StormCon conference program.

• Municipal stormwater managers–Describe your stormwater program, funding mechanisms, public outreach programs, or NPDES permit process. Share your experiences working with regulators, BMP vendors, and outside consultants.
• Engineering consultants and design professionals–Share new approaches to stormwater problems, present case studies of interesting projects, or discuss the latest design tools.
• Researchers–Present data on BMP performance, new technologies, or modeling and assessment tools.
• Regulatory personnel–Discuss developments in NPDES permitting, TMDL development, and state and local regulations.
• Contractors and environmental compliance professionals–If you’re an environmental professional with a department of transportation or national homebuilder; a Wal-Mart-, CPESC-, or CPSWQ-certified contractor; or a consultant, site inspector, or contractor with lots of experience, your knowledge about installation and maintenance of best management practices, stormwater compliance program management techniques, and present case studies of successful projects is needed.

Length of Presentations
All presentations are 30 minutes long, including a question-and-answer period. Presentations may be reclassified in a different track as appropriate.

Deadline for Submission
The deadline for receiving abstracts is Wednesday, December 5, 2007. Please do not include supplemental materials.

General Content Guidelines
The abstract you submit is the basis for your presentation description (if accepted) in the conference program. For this reason your presentation and paper must match the title and description in your abstract. Incomplete projects or presentations without conclusions are not desired.

Your peers expect you to present data, evaluation, and analyses or conclusions drawn from research or actual projects that are actionable. One caveat is that a presentation may address processes or techniques for organizing or documenting a project; in this case, the project need not be complete, because conclusions would evaluate processes, not the project.

Presentations may be reclassified in a different track than specified when submitted.

Because papers to be presented are selected on the basis of your abstract, keep in mind these selection criteria when writing the abstract. Will your paper:

• Have broad interest for people in the field of stormwater management and surface-water quality?
• Convey new knowledge or experience about an aspect of stormwater management?
• Demonstrate the use of a tool or methodology?
• Present data on the performance or use of a best management practice or technique?
• Provide data and analysis?
• Draw clear conclusions or evaluations that are actionable for the audience?

All accepted papers will be published in the conference proceedings. If your abstract is selected, you will receive guidelines for preparing and submitting your paper when you are notified of acceptance. Final papers are due to Forester Communications byMarch 17, 2008.Only papers that are presented at StormCon ’08 will be included in the conference proceedings.

StormCon does not cover presenters’ travel expenses or accommodations. However, a discounted registration fee is available for all presenters.

Click here to submit your abstract now.

Who Is the Audience for Your Presentation?
StormCon is attended by municipal, county, special district, state, federal, and military stormwater managers and engineers; engineering consultants; regulatory personnel; state transportation department professionals; watershed managers; contractors and developers; civil engineering professors; nonprofit environmental water-quality professionals; and compliance professionals from retail, manufacturing, and other industries that are concerned with stormwater and surface-water quality.

Depending on your subject and its focus, you may have multiple audiences with different needs, expectations, and backgrounds.

How to Submit
Please click here to submit your abstract online now.

If you do not have Internet access, you can mail your contact information and a 300- to 500-word abstract to Forester Communications, 2946 De La Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, or fax it to 805-682-0200, Attention StormCon Abstracts. Please do not include supplemental materials

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