FLOODS & SUDS
SuDS take a giant leap forward
Mark Caswell, technical manager at water management specialists Graf UK, dives into the latest SuDS development.
The mandatory implementation of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) in England is a mammoth development in the world of sustainable construction practices.
While SuDS has been a recommended practice for more than 10 years, this new legal requirement represents an unparalleled shift in the industry and is expected to have a huge impact on contractors and developers, and the construction sector as a whole.
SuDS encompasses a wide range of drainage techniques designed to manage surface water runoff in a sustainable manner, techniques which include permeable paving, attenuation tanks, green roofs, swales and detention basins. The primary goal of SuDS is to replicate natural drainage processes by managing runoff near its source and releasing it gradually, reducing flood risk and improving water quality.
Making it mandatory on all construction sites over 100m² will require a SuDS specific authorisation by the SuDS Approval Body (SAB) prior to
Mark Caswell
construction starting. This will require improved planning and communication between designers, developers and contractors to ensure the authorised scheme is achieved and implemented correctly.
Previously, SuDS was advisory but not mandatory in England, except for sites stipulated by local authorities. The National Planning Policy Framework, which had replaced the Policy Planning Statements in 2012, had set out the Government’s planning policies for England and how these were expected to be applied.
It had set out the Government’s requirements for the planning system only to the extent that it was relevant, proportionate, and necessary to do so. It provided a framework within which local people and their accountable councils could produce their own distinctive local and neighbourhood plans, which reflected the needs and priorities of their communities.
32 | February 2024 |
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