The use of green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) continues to grow as an important source of stormwater management in cities across the United States. Designing GSI systems often includes implementing pretreatment practices in order to avoid clogging, reduce maintenance, and increase the life span of the infrastructure. Often, arbitrary design guidelines are adopted for these pretreatment practices with unknown consequences on the longevity and performance of the subsurface systems. This preliminary study outlines a methodology by identifying key site selection, sampling procedures, and device selection in order to ultimately better understand GSI performance in Philadelphia. By sampling two stormwater management practices (SMPs) during simulated runoff tests and natural rain events at set sampling locations throughout the flow path in the SMP, we aim to characterize stormwater flow by measuring its particle size distribution. With different measurements of particle size distribution throughout the SMP, we aim to understand the SMP's longevity and performance as well as identify the needs for pretreatment protocol adjustments.
