Water management in Brussels: knowledge gained from the long time data series of the Flowbru regional telemetry system

Abstract

La revue scientifique électronique pour les recherches sur Bruxelles / Het elektronisch wetenschappelijk tijdschrift voor onderzoek over Brussel / The e-journal for academic research on Brussels Collection générale | 2017Water management in Brussels: knowledge gained from the long time data series of the Flowbru regional telemetry system AUTHOR'S NOTEThis work was supported by Innoviris through the Anticipate programme "Capitalizing on hydrometry data series to address Brussels water and wastewater management challenges" (Project 2013-PRFB-32). We would like to acknowledge the Flowbru telemetry system operated by the Société Bruxelloise de Gestion des Eaux, and the efficient help provided by Ir Gizèle Bazier (SBGE). Introduction 1In the early 2000s, the Brussels-Capital Region installed an extensive teletransmitted limnimeter network providing long time data series in most of the main collectors and bodies of water in Brussels. There are 166 sensors which measure parameters such as rainfall in the Brussels Region, water level, flow velocity, water temperature and a number of water quality parameters (www.flowbru.be) [SBGE, 2014]. The many Water management in Brussels: knowledge gained from the long time data series... Brussels Studies , Collection générale 1 motivations to install this network included the prevention of flooding, the quantification of the Brussels water budget, the measurement of the volumes of wastewater carried by each collector and the improvement of our understanding of the interactions between the sewer system and the natural hydrographical system. This initiative was also an important step towards compliance with the European Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC (WFD). The WFD directive requires European Union members to monitor their bodies of water, and aims, among other objectives, to restore the favourable ecological status or ecological potential of the different bodies of water. This can only be accomplished if the interactions between the artificial and natural water system are well understood. The first data were recorded around 2005, and every day new data are produced and archived. Long time data series are therefore available. As part of the Innoviris Anticipate programme, the project entitled "Capitalising on hydrometry data to address Brussels water and wastewater management challenges" aims at analysing the Flowbru database to extract knowledge on hydraulic and hydrological performance in Brussels based on the long time data series.