Cost-benefit considerations for stormwater ponds
Costs for ponds typically include costs for embankment, riser and spillway structures, outfall protection, vegetative stabilization, excavation, and grading. Additional costs for site preparation can include soil amendments, precision grading, plant materials and creation of occluding layers in coarse-textured soil types if wetlands systems must be created on upland sites due to project constraints. Project costs can be lowered if existing pre-construction site conditions are carefully considered and isolated areas with hydric soils contained within the footprint of the project are utilized as stormwater management facilities.
Additional maintenance costs will be incurred until the establishment of the wetland ecosystem. Invasive plants must be culled and dead plants replaced. The outlet structure may have to be adjusted, based on seasonal observations, to achieve the proper water surface in the pond.
Construction and maintenance costs
The Introduction to stormwater BMPs section outlines a cost estimation method which site planners could use to compare the relative construction and maintenance costs for structural best management practices. These curves are excellent for purposes of comparison; however, it is recommended that construction and maintenance budgets should be based on site specific information. Utilizing the table below and the cost estimation worksheet for stormwater ponds, will allow designers to avoid over or under estimation of fixed costs. The table below lists the specific site components that are specific to stormwater ponds. Not included in this table are those cost items that are common to all construction projects, such as mobilization, traffic control, erosion and sediment control, permitting, etc.
This table shows Cost components for stormwater ponds
(Link to this table)
| Implementation Stage | Primary Cost Components | Basic Cost Estimate | Other Considerations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Site Preparation | Tree & plant protection | Protection Cost ($/acre) x Affected Area (acre) | Removal of existing structures, topsoil removal and stockpiling |
| Topsoil salvage | Salvage cost ($/acre) x Affected Area (acre) | ||
| Clearing & grubbing | Clearing Cost ($/acre) x Affected Area (acre) | ||
| Site Formation | Excavation / grading | 8-ft Depth Excavation Cost ($/acre) x Area (acre) | Soil & rock fill material, tunneling |
| Hauling material offsite | Excavation Cost x (% of Material to be hauled away) | ||
| Structural Components | Inlet structure | ($/structure) | Pipes, catchbasins, manholes, valves |
| Outlet structure | ($/structure) | ||
| Site Restoration | Seeding or sodding | Seeding Cost ($/acre) x Seeded Area (acre) | Tree protection, soil amendments, seed bed preparation, trails |
| Planting / transplanting | Planting Cost ($/acre) x Planted Area (acre) | ||
| Annual Operation, Maintenance, and Inspection | Debris removal | Removal Cost ($/acre) x Area (acre) x Frequency (2 / 1yr) | Vegetation maintenance, cleaning of structures |
| Sediment removal | Removal Cost ($/acre) x Area (acre) x Frequency (1 / 5yr) | ||
| Gate / valve operation | Operation Cost ($) x Operation Frequency (2 / 1 yr) | ||
| Inspection | Inspection Cost ($) x Inspection Frequency (2 / 1 yr) | ||
| Mowing | Mowing Cost ($) x Mowing Frequency (4 / 1 yr) |
Stormwater pond cost estimate worksheet
Link to this table
| Project Title | ||||
| Owner | ||||
| Location | ||||
| Project Number | ||||
| Date | ||||
| Description | Units | Quantity | Unit Cost | Total Estimated Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Site Preparation | ||||
| Tree removal - up to 12" diameter | each | $350.00 | $0.00 | |
| Clear and grub brush | square yard | $1.50 | $0.00 | |
| Tree protection - temp. fence | lineal foot | $3.00 | $0.00 | |
| Topsoil - 6" depth, salvage on site | square yard | $4.50 | $0.00 | |
| Site Formation | ||||
| Excavation - 8' depth | square yard | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Grading | square yard | $1.50 | $0.00 | |
| Hauling off-site - 8' depth | square yard | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Structural Components | ||||
| Inlet structure | each | $2,000.00 | $0.00 | |
| Overflow structure | each | $3,500.00 | $0.00 | |
| Site Restoration | ||||
| Sod - above vegetative bench | square yard | $4.50 | $0.00 | |
| Soil preparation | square yard | $5.00 | $0.00 | |
| Seeding - vegetative bench | square yard | $0.50 | $0.00 | |
| Mulch | square yard | $2.00 | $0.00 | |
| Subtotal | $0.00 | |||
| 10% Contingencies | $0.00 | |||
| Subtotal | $0.00 | |||
| Apply MN Location Factor | $0.00 | |||
| TAL CONSTRUCTION COST | $0.00 | |||
| Annual Operation and Maintenance | ||||
| Debris removal | per visit | $100.00 | $0.00 | |
| Remove invasive plants | per visit | $500.00 | $0.00 | |
| Replant wetland vegetation | per plant | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Repair erosion | square yard | $75.00 | $0.00 | |
| Sediment removal and disposal | cubic yard | $10.00 | $0.00 | |
| Mow | per visitt | $150.00 | $0.00 | |
| Gate / valve operation | per visit | $125.00 | $0.00 | |
| Inspection | per visit | $125.00 | $0.00 | |
| Subtotal | $0.00 | |||
| Apply MN Location Factor | $0.00 | |||
| TOTAL ANNUAL O&M COST | $0.00 | |||
| Minnesota Location Factors | ||||
| Bemidji | 0.963 | |||
| Brainerd | 1.003 | |||
| Detroit Lakes | 0.962 | |||
| Duluth | 0.991 | |||
| Mankato | 0.990 | |||
| Bemidji | 0.963 | |||
| Minneapolis | 1.035 | |||
| Rochester | 0.983 | |||
| St. Paul | 1.000 | |||
| St. Cloud | 1.002 | |||
| Thief River Falls | 1.042 | |||
| Willmar | 0.961 | |||
| Windom | 0.935 | |||
Note: Suggested unit costs are based on RS Means prices for Spring, 2005, then factored into an area basis based on typical design features for Constructed Wetlands BMPs. To be used for preliminary cost estimation
Related pages
- Overview for stormwater ponds
- Types of stormwater ponds
- Design criteria for stormwater ponds
- Design considerations for constructed stormwater ponds used for harvest and irrigation use/reuse
- Construction specifications for stormwater ponds
- Assessing the performance of stormwater ponds
- Operation and maintenance of stormwater ponds
- Cost-benefit considerations for stormwater ponds
- Calculating credits for stormwater ponds
- Stormwater wet pond fact sheet
- References for stormwater ponds
- Requirements, recommendations and information for using stormwater pond as a BMP in the MIDS calculator