Kennedy Jenks remains at the forefront of innovative natural design in stormwater (a crucial natural resource) management and treatment. Our designs have met some of the most stringent standards in North America while improving water quality, optimizing land use, and reducing (or eliminating) the need for synthetic chemical treatment. The following award-winning and novel projects leverage natural biological processes to deliver regulatory compliance and net environmental benefits for our clients.
The Marine Terminal Stormwater Biofiltration System project for the Port of Port Angeles earned KJ the 2019 California Stormwater Quality Association Outstanding Stormwater BMP Implementation project award. Building on past successes and lessons learned, KJ assembled passive, biofiltration treatment system technologies and concepts to create the Marine Terminal and Cargo Surge Area biofiltration system. Beyond system performance, design considered minimizing impacts to port operations and the ease and cost of long-term maintenance activities. Acknowledging the evolving regulatory climate and changes in Port cargo types and handling processes over time, system adaptability was addressed in the design process. The treatment best management practices (BMP) have been effectively integrated into facility operations.
Kennedy Jenks assisted the Port of Tacoma in designing a first-of-its-kind stormwater biofiltration system for runoff from the Port’s 25-acre waterfront log sort yard adjacent to the Hylebos Waterway. Stormwater runoff at the site is covered under the Washington State Department of Ecology’s (Ecology’s) Industrial Stormwater General Permit (ISGP) with regulatory limits for suspended solids, COD, and metals. Kennedy Jenks’ provided turnkey services from design through construction management, delivering a groundbreaking four-stage treatment approach incorporating initial and secondary media filtration stages followed by two stages of vegetated biofiltration treatment designed to accommodate first flush events.
For the Port of Longview, Kennedy Jenks has designed and constructed two of the largest bioretention systems in the state. Eight individual stormwater treatment systems serve many of the Port’s berths, relying on a combination of proprietary and non-proprietary approaches based on vegetated media filtration concepts.
KJ assisted the Port of Portland with environmental and engineering services for the Marine Terminal 6 (T6) Stormwater Treatment and Conveyance Project for nearly a decade. Marine T6 is a 420-acre facility located on the Columbia River just upstream of the confluence with the Willamette River that includes berths for imported automobiles and an intermodal container terminal. In 2018, KJ and the Port embarked on designing a stormwater infiltration system retrofit to treat stormwater collected from 80 acres of impervious surface. The design includes two deep lift stations, 4,800 linear feet of force main, and a 3/4-acre bioretention system. KJ assisted in constructing the system, which has been operational since the winter of 2021.
Project Highlight
Kennedy Jenks’ innovative biofiltration systems make use of native vegetation to manage stormwater runoff, providing clients with a cost-effective solution that provides a net environmental benefit and achieves regulatory compliance for a broad range of measurement endpoints. The ability to customize the shape and configuration of the system avoids encroaching on a facility’s operational footprint and makes use of un/underutilized spaces.
