Dry Swales
11/12/2025
“How do we categorize water quality swales that are dry for most of the time?”
Water quality swales treat stormwater runoff using vegetated open channels. Not all of these interventions are designed the same. Some are dry for most of the time, giving them the name Dry Swales. Dry swales have specifically selected, highly permeable soil, an underdrain system, and surrounding check dams. Dry swales provide strong performance for metals and nitrate removal, but have higher costs from using highly permeable soils and underdrain systems.
Image credit: https://aqualisco.com/
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