Base Flood Elevation

Base Flood Elevation

Base Flood Elevation

10/07/26

“Why does FEMA care about the water elevation level resulting from a one-hundred-year flood?”

U.S. FEMA quantifies a one-hundred-year flood as one with a one percent chance of happening in a given year. The water level elevation above sea level resulting from that flood is called the Base Flood Elevation, or BFE. FEMA publishes BFEs in its maps. If your building is at or below the BFE, you will likely face higher flood insurance premiums. New development that affects hydrology can alter the BFE for a local area.

Smart Flood Vents 

Smart Flood Vents 

Smart Flood Vents 

10/06/26

“How can we make flood vents that open themselves during heavy storms?”

Flood vents allow stormwater to pass through buildings to avoid foundation damage. But manually opening a flood vent can be dangerous and exhausting. So what if we were to produce a flood vent that automatically opens when water touches the vent? Well, this is the idea behind Smart Flood Vents. Smart flood vents are a worthwhile upgrade for many different types of buildings.

Image credit: https://amc911.com/

Flood Vents

Flood Vents

Flood Vents

10/05/26

“How can we prevent building foundation collapse during a flood by letting water flow through?”

Building foundations support a building’s load and distribute it throughout the soil. During storms, floodwater can pile up outside of a building foundation and cause failure due to hydrostatic pressure. But what if we were to let the water flow through an enclosed area to prevent water buildup and equalize hydrostatic pressure? Well, this is the idea behind Flood Vents, small openings that allow channels of stormwater to pass through the building foundation.

Deepwater Canals

Deepwater Canals

Deepwater Canals

10/04/26

“Are there canals sized for large ships?”

Canals are artificial water channels. These features are often built for transportation and logistics purposes. Sometimes we need to transport large vessels through the canals. So how can we use our engineering mindset to solve this? Well, what if we were to build canals so deep that even large ships could pass? These Deepwater Canals are vital for keeping industrial and logistics operations afloat in many places. The Sacramento Deep Water Ship Channel (pictured) is an example of a deepwater canal.

Image credit: https://alchetron.com/

Biological Nutrients

Biological Nutrients

Biological Nutrients

10/03/26

“What are biological nutrients, and why are they so important for organic life?”

Organic life is the foundation of our ecological world. Organic life requires the Biological Nutrients of nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), sulfur (S), and silicon (Si) to function. Microorganisms in water/wastewater treatment systems need the incoming water/wastewater to have a certain amount of biological nutrients to grow properly.

Solids Loading

Solids Loading

Solids Loading

10/02/26

“How can we quantify the rate of solid material loaded onto a unit area or volume?”

Many processes involve loading solids onto a specific area or volume, such as sludge onto a clarifier. To help quantify this variable, people define the rate of mass loaded per unit area or volume as the Solids Loading. Solids loading is especially helpful in water and wastewater treatment engineering, where people use it to determine the capacity a treatment component can handle.

Federal Dam (Hudson River)

Federal Dam (Hudson River)

Federal Dam (Hudson River)

10/01/26

“What marks the end of tidal influence in the Hudson River?”

The Hudson River is a fascinating piece of geography. The upper portion runs like a normal river, while the lower portion is a tidally influenced estuary. But what marks this point? Well, over 100 years ago, the federal U.S. government built the Federal Dam to control the transition from the lower to upper portions of the Hudson River.

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The Hudson Highlands

The Hudson Highlands

The Hudson Highlands

09/29/26

“What are the mountains that surround the Hudson River?”

The Hudson River is New York State’s longest river. Surrounding the Hudson in Putnam and Orange Counties in New York State are The Hudson Highlands, a patch of mountains that are a subrange of the Appalachians. The Indigenous Lenape people are the rightful stewards of the Hudson Highlands.