A stormwater management framework for predicting first flush intensity
and quantifying its influential factors
Abstract
Despite numerous applications of Random Forest (RF) techniques in the
water-quality field, its use to detect first-flush (FF) events is
limited. In this study, we developed a stormwater management framework
based on RF algorithms and two different FF definitions (30/80 and M(V)
curve). This framework can predict the FF intensity of a single rainfall
event for three of the most detected pollutants in urban areas (TSS, TN,
and TP), yielding satisfactory results (30/80: accuracy average = 0.87;
M(V) curve: accuracy average = 0.75). Furthermore, the framework can
quantify and rank the most critical variables based on their level of
importance in predicting FF, using a non-model-biased method based on
game theory. Compared to the classical physically-based models that
require catchment and drainage information apart from meteorological
data, our framework inputs only include rainfall-runoff variables.
Furthermore, it is generic and independent from the data adopted in this
study, and it can be applied to any other geographical region with a
complete rainfall-runoff dataset. Therefore, the framework developed in
this study is expected to contribute to accurate FF prediction, which
can be exploited for the design of treatment systems aimed to store and
treat the FF-runoff volume.