RAINWATER AND SURFACE WATER MANAGEMENT
of’ groups. A good external environment can also bring recognition and accolades, while the improvement of the hospital environment can also help improve the experience and satisfaction of those recovering, visiting, and working in, hospitals.
Incorporating SuDS
Although the pandemic has shifted people’s attention in recent months, it has also highlighted the importance of green space for people’s health and wellbeing.
features provide a sanctuary for recuperation, relaxation, and rest in a setting away from a busy hospital interior. SuDS features integrated into the surrounding landscape can provide spaces for exercise, rehabilitation, and physical or horticultural therapy for patients.
Climate change adaptation By slowing the flow of rainwater and reducing the amount of rain that drains into sewers, streams, and rivers, SuDS help us adapt to the challenges created by climate change, urbanisation, and poor water management. SuDS reduce the amount of rain entering drainage and sewerage systems, thus reducing pressure on urban sewerage networks, and preventing overspills of sewage into streams and rivers, and even into homes and businesses. Some SuDS features allow water to soak into underground aquifers, which helps maintain the flows of streams and rivers in periods of dry weather.
A London flood risk assessment found that hospitals often have critical facilities and equipment in the basement or ground floor that can be catastrophically damaged by flooding. SuDS can divert, slow, and reduce the amount of surface water run-off that can cause flood disruption and damage. SuDS can also enable a once-waterlogged courtyard or car park to be more accessible and useable. Aside from managing excess rainwater, SuDS can provide cooling in the summer. Trees provide shade, and SuDS features like rain gardens on or around buildings help cool through evaporation of water from surfaces and transpiration by plants. These types of features provide a healthier and more comfortable living environment in both the summer and winter, while potentially reducing reliance on air-conditioning.
76 Health Estate Journal November 2020
SuDS planting can also improve local air quality by absorbing, filtering, and dispersing harmful airborne pollutants from vehicles. They also help absorb and reduce noise from traffic.
Benefits for nature
SuDS can support wildlife in urban areas through the creation or improvement of habitats. Green installations can deliver attractive places that encourage pollinators and birds, and can contribute to and help deliver many of the outcomes within a Biodiversity Management Plan for hospitals and local authority areas. Such systems can also improve water quality through filtration, adsorption, and breakdown of pollutants, potentially reducing pollution in surface water run-off by up to 90%.
Social and reputational benefits The benefits from SuDS can contribute to a Trust’s Corporate Social Responsibility. SuDS and landscape features can provide a focal point for activities for staff sustainability volunteers and local ‘Friends
Operationally, SuDS can be readily integrated within the capital and maintenance investment programmes of hospitals. Features like green roofs or permeable surfaces can be incorporated during refurbishment and /or expansion, and can potentially prolong the life of other assets. For example, greening a flat roof can extend the life of that roof. SuDS features can be easier to maintain when considered as part of existing landscape design and maintenance activities. Not all SuDS features will be suitable for every hospital, but their flexibility means that better rainwater and surface water management can be delivered by SuDS anywhere. Some estates have introduced only relatively simple interventions like permeable surfaces. Other projects are more aspirational, and combine permeable surfaces with more attractive green SuDS features. Opportunities for SuDS differ from site to site, depending on the density of the setting, and the amount of green space or hard surfacing already in place. Other potential constraints, such as concern about infection from harvested rainwater or open water in landscape features, will depend on local circumstances, and the type of patients being treated in specific parts of the hospital. Budget will also be a factor, but costs may be reduced if SuDS are considered early on and incorporated into planned projects or refurbishments. For those operating and managing hospital estates, the Greater London Authority (GLA) will be publishing new guidance on SuDS for hospitals, authored by CIRIA, Business in the Community, and Robert Bray Associates. This document, which will appear on the GLA website
Features like green roofs or permeable surfaces can be incorporated during refurbishment and/or expansion, and can potentially prolong the life of other assets.
©Plan to Garden
©North Bristol NHS Trust
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