Sustainable solutions for rainwater capture

03 February 2015
Filtration + Separation

Both industrialised and non-industrialised countries are bearing the

burden of repeated storms, floods, droughts and temperature
extremes. Alex Stephenson, operations director of Hydro
Internationals UK Stormwater Division, looks at sustainable
solutions being developed for flood control and surface water
treatment.
According to a new report by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), disasters caused by
weather, climate and water-related hazards are on the rise worldwide. It seems as if severe weather
patterns are tormenting countries across the globe with the same ruthlessness whether rich or poor,
developed or developing. The world saw nearly five times as many natural disasters in the first
decade of the 21st Century as it did in 1970.
Flood risk the greatest threat
Of all the consequences of climate change, increased flood risk poses the greatest threat. According
to the WMO report, about 80% of the 3,496 disasters between 1971 and 2010 were due to flooding
and storms. We are going to experience rising sea levels and more intense rain. There will be greater
swings between flooding and drought.
The UKs Committee on Climate Change reflected similar predictions in a report published earlier this
year. The committee, which advises the UK Government on climate change resilience, warned that
three-quarters of Englands existing flood defences are inadequately maintained. While improvements
have been made to flood resilience, it is not yet enough to prepare for the weather to come.
In winter 2014, parts of England saw rainfall unprecedented in 250 years. In January alone some
areas experienced three times the average and 7000 properties were flooded. The UK Government
pledged an extra 270million after the winter floods, but only to repair the damage done.
There can be little doubt that climate change is moving the goalposts for urban water management
and we need to respond quickly and creatively. Population growth and continued development are
placing ever-greater challenges for managing urban water.
Political memories can be short when it comes to paying for flood protection, although there is good
reason for investment in flood resilience in urban environments. Every 1 invested in flood defences
in the UK has been calculated to save 8 in damage to property.
To a householder or business owner, every flood whether large or small is a costly disaster. Whats
more it's not just large-scale coastal and river flooding that is stretching urban infrastructures beyond
their limits. The majority of flooding we experience is from surface water.
Surface water flooding
Built environments are largely made up of impermeable surfaces. Where the pre-developed natural
landscape would have enabled surface water to be infiltrated into the ground, close to where the rain
falls, in the developed environment rainwater is frequently conveyed over long distances through
underground pipes. The water has to be treated by energy-intensive sewage treatment plants and
risks causing sewage overflows into rivers and the sea.

Critically, its not just water quantitywe need to be concerned about. Surface water picks up and
carries pollution, trash, silt and sediment, metals and hydrocarbons, with it, discharging into
watercourses or into sewer networks.
Waste or resource?
Increasingly, more sustainable and integrated approaches are being developed that recognise that
controlling water is not just a cost, but an opportunity to create value in urban environments.
Its an evolution thats happening all over the world. Countries are developing their approaches and
legislative frameworks to water management in different ways and, as that that happens, our ability to
share and adopt best practice is rapidly accelerating.
Latest thinking has also linked sustainable solutions to rainwater capture and re-use. In particular,
there is a growing recognition that better use and re-use of water presents an opportunity to achieve
multiple benefits for communities; that water is a resource to be exploited, rather than waste to be
managed and flushed away.
Multiple values
The concept of Ecosystems Services places greater emphasis on the multiple values that surface
water drainage features can contribute to the economic wellbeing of a community. In this way, the
value is justified not just in terms of cost of the drainage, but in terms of amenity benefits provided, for
example through landscaping, biodiversity and leisure facilities and so on.
Approaches such as low impact development (LID) and Green Infrastructure in the US, together with
water sensitive urban design (WSUD) from Australia have made significant contributions to global
thinking. In the UK, we have been campaigning for decades for more widespread uptake of
sustainable drainage systems (SuDS).
Sustainable Drainage Systems
The principle of SuDS is that they are designed and engineered to manage surface water as close as
possible to where it falls by mimicking natural paths and processes. SuDS fulfil the joint objectives of
quality, quantity and amenity using a wide toolbox of techniques to deliver attenuation, infiltration, flow
control and water treatment. SuDS can be natural features or manufactured devices, or a
combination of both.
Effective sustainable drainage systems dont just control water quantity; just as importantly they
improve the quality of water being discharged back into the environment. Surface water flows lift
sediments and pollutants from hard surfaces such as fields, roads and industrial sites and carry them
into rivers and watercourses.
The European Water Framework Directive is driving forward legislation in the UK, setting binding
targets with high standards for treating diffuse pollution in surface water run-off.
A vision for widespread SuDS
New regulations are soon expected to make Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) compulsory in
England and Wales for new development. But the sobering fact is they are only applicable to new
development. Even when the legislation is in force and the phased implementation completed over
the next few years, the flood-resilience contribution made will be just the tip of the iceberg.
The real challenge comes in upgrading and improving the existing surface water drainage
infrastructure. In the industry we give this the jargon tag of retrofit SuDS. Because they are often
smaller and less grandiose compared with new developments, retrofit SuDS schemes can seem like
a poor relation. But in reality, they are the lifeblood of improving surface water flooding resilience and
water quality.
The responsibility of business
The challenge of retrofitting sustainable drainage to tackle surface water flooding hotspots and
improve water quality is particularly relevant for commercial and industrial premises. Businesses

might have, for example, high quantities of runoff from roofs, car parks, vehicle loading bays or waste
collection areas.
Each commercial activity comes with its own challenges, and risks, for effective surface water
management and pollution containment. The contribution of business needs to cover both better flood
protection control and improved surface water quality. The solutions include rainwater re-use, for
example collecting water from the vast roofs of out of town shopping centres and using it for toilet
flushing or vehicle cleaning.
Surface water treatment
High quantities of waste materials, sediments and pollution can often be present in surface water
particularly during the earlier stages of a rain storm event. If the run-off is left untreated, the receiving
waters can suffer extensive and damaging pollution which affects the entire ecosystem.
Pollutants that need to be removed from runoff include floating matter like litter, sediments and silts,
heavy metals, hydrocarbons and organics, faecal matter and dissolved chemicals such as fertilisers
and nutrients.
Most pollution in runoff is attached to sediment particles, so removing the sediment results in
significant pollutant removal. Sediment can contain high concentrations of hydrocarbons, and heavy
metals such as lead, copper and cadmium. It can also build up in rivers and drainage systems and
increase flood risk.
Toolbox
Choosing from the whole toolbox of techniques using natural and manufactured features is the best
way to deliver the optimum outcome for pollutant removal, depending on the site conditions.
Especially when it comes to meeting water quality objectives, manufactured devices can provide
predictable performance with well-understood maintenance regimes particularly important in
industrial settings. They can also enable, enhance or protect natural features designed to add
amenity value.
Devices such as the Hydro Downstream Defender and the Hydro Up-Flo Filter deliver surface water
filtration and treatment to meet the pollutant removal requirements of a site. Using manufactured
devices provides a solution in a small footprint, which can be essential where development land is at
a premium, or in a tight retrofit situation.
The consequences of Climate Change are not going away any time soon and that means we have to
regard the need for better urban water management as a matter of urgency. The techniques and
technologies are already well-developed across the world for every country to learn from.
Hydro Downstream Defender and the Hydro Up-Flo TM are trademarks of Hydro International.