Flood Risks and Water Damage in Hamilton Township

11/23/2020 (Permalink)

From Casinos to Homes in Hamilton Township, SERVPRO Makes You the Winner with Water Damage Mitigation

SERVPRO Provides Water Mitigation Services for Our Hamilton Township Neighbors

Land development in Hamilton Township reflects the continually changing needs of our area. New residents moving in and growing families require an increase in the acreage needed for essential services such as electricity, water, septic, and sewer systems. Today’s township services also include more robust electrical grids for uninterrupted service and the latest in the internet and other telecommunication requirements. All of these require a more developed property which can increase flood risks.

The problem is that much of the property developed recently is former farmland and orchards. These areas are far closer to waterways than previously developed land, which means developers have to cover the areas with impervious surfaces, i.e., concrete and asphalt, making them Urban Use Lands. This increases the volume of stormwater runoff that contains pollutants that contaminate nearby streams and other bodies of water, as well as the homes and businesses in the pathway of the floodwater. Adding to the land pollution also given over for transportation, recreational, industrial, and commercial use needed to support each new residential development.

Over 59 percent of the Hamilton Township municipality is comprised of Urban Use Land, with the majority of that used for residential properties. Of that number, approximately 30 to 35 percent is considered covered with an impervious surface.

Natural Counters to Effects of Hamilton Township Urban Use Lands

Forests, open water, riparian zones, and wetlands make up over 31 percent of Hamilton Township. These areas are Natural Lands and have far fewer amounts of impervious surfaces than Urban Use Lands as they do not have residential areas or accompanying infrastructure requirements.

Also, these natural areas help mitigate the negative effects caused by stormwater. For example, wetlands are superb environments for an extensive number of plant, insect, and animal species. They are exceptional habitats since they both process nutrients and store them more efficiently than other natural or man-made environments. It is these nutrients that preserve existing vegetation and wildlife and also provide the food and energy source for growth. Forests filter pollutants that can improve water quality. They also serve as a brake to slow stormwater flooding, which not only protects vegetation and wildlife but residential areas as well.

Destruction of Natural Lands Leads to Additional Threats

Destruction of Natural Use Lands has led to extensive changes in the hydrological environments around Hamilton Township. Clearing vegetation and fragmenting the landscape for development alter natural watersheds, placing other Natural Use and Urban Use Lands under threat whenever there is a severe storm. Five major effects were identified as far back as 1994 on the hydrology (the branch of science concerned with the earth's water, especially its movement with land) of the Hamilton Township Natural Use Lands.

• A larger amount of precipitation is converted to surface runoff
• Precipitation is converted to surface runoff at a faster rate
• Elevated peak flows in streams
• Decreased low flow in streams due to reduced groundwater storage input
• Degraded stream water quality

These hydrological effects are considered the results of Urban Land Use development actions. These actions include draining, ditching, diking, damming, and filling of wetlands to create more stable, dry landmasses for further impervious surfaces to build everything from roads to single-family homes.

The increased impervious surfaces of asphalt and concrete reduce and even prevent natural precipitation (rain) from properly infiltrating and being absorbed by the soil. For example, highways and parking lots have much higher surface runoff velocity rates than a forest floor, a meadow, or a wetland. The runoff volume is also larger, indicating that surface and shallow subsurface storage is more reduced than it is on Natural Use Lands. This volume further reduces lower long-term groundwater recharge and the subsequent groundwater discharge during periods of baseflow in droughts, which can cause the following:

• Increased pollutants cause a decline in water quality
• Decreased water levels degrade Riparian Habitats
• Interference with navigable waterways

Other negative impacts of increased impervious surfaces include the increased volume of water and levels of soil and associated contaminants, which flow through the Natural Use watershed. Improperly managed runoff is the equivalent of a six-lane highway when it comes to transporting pollutants such as bacteria, fertilizers, and debris such as trees washed out by ditching and draining. All of these are eventually washed directly into Hamilton Township creeks, streams, and their tributaries, contaminating the surface water.

Flooding Is Not the Only Threat to Hamilton Township Homes

For many homeowners, the source of water comes from inside the home. Examples include a failed appliance like a dishwasher or an inlet pipe cracked from an early frost. SERVPRO considers water from these sources clean and makes water mitigation in a Hamilton Township home less difficult since there is no manpower or resources expended to eliminate the health threat from the pollutants in stormwater.

Mitigation specialists immediately begin using water pumps and smaller extraction devices to draw water out of each residence. Many water mitigation projects do not require heavy-duty equipment, but mops, buckets, squeegee, and elbow grease. As they remove the water, other team members begin discarding debris. In a very short time, water destroys everything paper-based, from books to photographs. While some items can be saved from disposal, any attempt at restoration must be made by a professional service.

Preserving wood furniture can be accomplished easier, but it depends on the material. Hardwoods handle water better than composites like fiberboard, but once specialists quickly set up a combination of air movers and exhaust fans, most items can be preserved. If needed, they can also set up dehumidifiers to reduce the threat of not just wood cracking and splitting but also preserve the varnish and other finishes.

No matter if it is a sudden thunderstorm or a split inlet pipe, you need professional restoration when it comes to water mitigation if your Hamilton Township home floods. That is why SERVPRO of Atlantic City / Hamilton / Hammonton needs to be your first call. Contact us today at (609) 965-0885 to get started.