Echohydrology Demonstration Site

UTHM campus was flooded where the water depth reached up to 20 cm at some locations. The entire campus was affected by the flood. This situation came from poor drainage system around campus (Ibrahim and Ahmed, 2023). The lack of proper and large enough drainage system that can accommodate the quantity of rainfall and runoff intensity led to flash flood. Besides, UTHM was found to have a thick layer of clay underlying soil which may indicate a poor infiltration rate. This also increases the possibility of flood occurrence.UTHM campus infrastructure and facilities increased significantly when compared to 2006 and 2023 conditions. The total increment on the campus size is around 5.0 times, in 2006 the total fully developed area was 45 ha, while in 2023 the total developed area is around 227 ha. After the 2006 flood event, UTHM has integrated MSMA guidelines and ecohydrology concept to develop the storm water management system. Several retention ponds, swale drainage networks, groundwater well, rainwater harvesting, and pump stations were included in the adopted storm water management system. Integration between MSMA guidelines and the ecohydrology concepts were adopted to not only protect the campus from flooding issue but also to enhance the storm water quality before discharging it out to the nearest river. UTHM storm management system covers around 7.5% of the total area of the campus. This system scatters between retention ponds, swale drainage, mechanical pump, wetland, and concrete drainage.