Urban Stormwater Management, a Tool for Adapting to Climate Change: From Risk to Resource

Abstract

The effects of climate change on rainfall in the Mediterranean region are manifested in an overall decreasing trend, and greater irregularity in annual volumes and the city of Alicante is no exception. In addition, there has also been a spread of the urbanised area, which has led to an increase in the flood risk in urban areas (due to a greater runoff and the occupation of flood hazard areas) and drought events due to an increase in the water demand. In light of these new scenarios, the Mediterranean cities should design adaptation systems based on rainwater harvesting within the framework of a circular economy. This study analyses the integration of rainwater in flood and water demand management in the city of Alicante (Southern Spain). In recent years, this city has developed infrastructures in order to use these resources. To do this, different databases have been analysed (rainfall and volume of water collected in the green infrastructure systems). The results reveal that stormwater has become highly important in urban water management in Alicante as the city is now using a resource that previously went to waste and created problems (flooding and pollution). By way of conclusion, it is worth mentioning that the incorporation of rainwater for urban use in Alicante has reduced the pressure on traditional resources in satisfying water demand and has also acted as a measure for adapting to climate change.

Proposal of the “Wastewater Use Basin” Concept as an Integrated Sewage and Rainwater Management Unit in Semiarid Regions—A Case Study in the Southeast of the Iberian Peninsula

“…In the current context of climate change, one of the main ways of obtaining water resources that are not subjected to climatic variations is by increasing the so-called non-conventional sources, particularly the use of treated sewage and desalinated water [5]. Collection of rainwater in large-capacity tanks and its use can also be considered [7], which makes it possible to take advantage of the intense rainfall that has occurred frequently, in recent decades, in some climatic regions such as the Mediterranean [8].…”

Experimental Flash Floods Assessment Through Urban Flood Risk Mitigation (UFRM) Model: The Case Study of Ligurian Coastal Cities

“…Urbanisation has widely modified local, regional and national water cycles through the traditional drainage systems' evident inability to cope with new urban sprawl (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020). Modification from permeable to impervious land, especially in urban contexts (i.e., streets, roofs, buildings) leads to a higher peak flow rate of runoff while limiting the groundwater recharge.…”

Mecanismos de las políticas públicas para la gestión sostenible del agua: hacia un modelo eficiente en las Islas Baleares

“…El uso de agua pluvial es una práctica tradicional históricamente arraigada en el Mediterráneo y en otros territorios semiáridos (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020;Kilinc et al, 2023). Su empleo se está convirtiendo en un enfoque de gestión cada vez más prominente en los entornos urbanos con escasez de agua (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020).…”

“…El uso de agua pluvial es una práctica tradicional históricamente arraigada en el Mediterráneo y en otros territorios semiáridos (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020;Kilinc et al, 2023). Su empleo se está convirtiendo en un enfoque de gestión cada vez más prominente en los entornos urbanos con escasez de agua (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020). En estos sistemas, el volumen idóneo del tanque de almacenamiento se establece en función del número de usuarios, la demanda de agua no potable, la pluviometría y la superficie de captación.…”

“…La estrategia de uso de recurso hídrico alternativo genera externalidades positivas. Reduce el volumen y la contaminación del agua a tratar en las Estaciones Depuradoras de Aguas Residuales (EDAR) (Grupo TRAGSA, 2015;Lara, 2018;Saurí y Garcia-Acosta, 2020), disminuye la escorrentía superficial y, favorece la laminación de los picos de precipitación que causan inundaciones (Hernández-Hernández et al, 2020;Jamali et al, 2020). Además, es energéticamente eficiente al aminorar la producción de agua desalada (Domènech y Vallès, 2014) y reducir el volumen de bombeo del abastecimiento disperso (Loux et al, 2012;Ghafourian et al, 2022).…”