RAINWATER MANAGEMENT BUILDING RESILIENCE, COME RAIN OR SHINE


What does the upcoming Environment Bill mean for rainwater management and building resilient landscapes?


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n May 2021, it was announced that new legal duties on water companies and government will be included in the Environment Bill to reduce sewage discharged into waterways. The additions to the Bill include duties on the Government to publish a plan to reduce sewage discharges from storm overflows by September 2022 and to report to Parliament on the progress of implementing the plan. Water companies will also have a duty to publish data on storm overflow operation on an annual basis. Combined sewers are under greater pressure as a result of population growth, increased urban density, and the challenges we face as a direct result of climate change, such as increased rainfall and severe flooding. Jon Stewart, business development director for drainage at Polypipe Civls and Green Urbanistion says that already this year in the UK, we’ve seen several instances of flash floods causing major damage and harm. “But it’s not only storm overflows that we need to consider or what the Bill sets out to address,” he says.


Building resilience


“The forthcoming Bill, which is currently in the House of Lords, will be the biggest shake-up of green legislation in a generation. The legally binding changes will cover a wide range of aspects from the regulation of chemicals to air quality. Ultimately, the primary aim is to build resilience, creating environments and communities that are able to withstand the impact of climate change, population growth and resource scarcity.


“As our most precious resource, water is essential to building this resilience and therefore forms a key part of the Bill. As well as a sewage management plan, water companies will be required to publish a water resources management plan, as well as strategies for drought, flood and overall catchment resilience.”


Stewart adds that the exact details are still to be confirmed, but are likely to include new responsibilities around water management to affect the whole supply chain, from local planning authorities and designers to suppliers and developers. Therefore, the industry will need a stronger, more collaborative way of working with merchants and a close relationship with solution providers will play


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a vital role. “Working in partnership, solution providers can be on hand to support merchants and their customers, especially as they navigate the changes the Bill brings, and advise on new, innovative products that can help deliver the many facets of the legislation,” he says.


A holistic approach


Rather than look at ways to avoid floods or droughts, improve water quality, decrease our use of potable water, or reduce environment risk as individual problems, Stewart says we need to rethink how we manage surface water in an integrated way, and that by doing so, we can tackle these challenges simultaneously with a scalable, more efficient approach that can adapt over time.


“What’s more, this way of thinking also helps meet some of the wider sustainability objectives of the Bill, such as Biodiversity Net Gain, which requires developers to achieve a minimum of 10% improvement in biodiversity on or near a site to get planning permission. Crucial to this holistic approach is the next generation of sustainable drainage systems, known as green urbanisation,” he says.


Going green (with blue) Green urbanisation uses attenuated surface water at source to build resilient landscapes that can withstand increasingly frequent extreme weather events. These ground- breaking systems also increase urban green density and enable local ecosystems to establish and mature, delivering the maximum natural capital return.


Stewart says: “By retaining, managing and reusing water at source, we can ecologically regenerate the urban landscape with innovative green assets such as blue-green roofs, raingardens, pocket parks, SuDS


planters – the potential is both endless and inspiring.”


What’s more, he adds that by integrating with smart, digital technologies, green urbanisation solutions will be able to use weather predictions to prepare for extreme weather and manage water accordingly. “This helps to significantly reduce, or even eliminate, the volume of stormwater entering the combined sewage network, but it means it can also continue supporting volume planting and ecosystems through prolonged dry spells. “Re-using rainfall through landscape-wide source control and breakthrough net-zero irrigation technologies reduces potable water demand, which is essential to sustaining expanding urban populations. It also reduces energy consumption by decreasing pollution and volumetric loads at water treatment plants. And, through the support of widespread durable urban green spaces, re-use lowers the heat island effect - and air conditioning demand.”


A watershed moment Stewart believes that the upcoming Bill presents a watershed moment and will revolutionise and redefine the environmental strategy of the industry. “With extreme weather occurrences increasing in frequency and severity around the world, it’s never been more important for government and industry to take action,” he says.


“To build more resilient landscapes that can withstand the impact of climate change and urban population expansion, we must rethink how we manage, use and reuse water. The Bill is the ideal catalyst for this shift, driving a more creative, forward-thinking and collaborative way of managing water to benefit individuals, communities and the environment.” BMJ


www.buildersmerchantsjournal.net September 2021


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