LID Permeable Paving Ecoraster

Stormwater Management: Do You Plan, or Do You Panic?

There are planners and there are “panic-ers”.

You know which one you are…

There are times that it really doesn’t matter too much, when everything eventually sorts itself out – and then there are times in which advanced planning makes all the difference.

Stormwater management has become an issue for which we must “plan” for, so we do not “panic”.

We all know that weather patterns have changed. The extreme rain events are becoming more frequent and much stronger.

Our urban planning, designs and green building strategies have not adapted as quickly as needed, and combined with the rapid growth in our urban centers, we are seeing, first hand, the detrimental results.

sewer-stormwater-cover

What was once deemed the “hundred year storm” has now become the storm we are seeing every few years. Our existing municipal drainage infrastructure cannot handle the increasing volumes of runoff water, which is further complicated by the increasing solid surfaces found in our cities coming from buildings, roads, sidewalks and surface parking lots that are not permeable.

The runoff coming from these solid surfaces is most often polluted, and in the spring contains tremendously high concentrations of winter salt which we know to be detrimental and damaging to the Great Lakes, natural water bodies and neighbouring ecosystems.

Flooding is becoming commonplace and is, not surprisingly, a cause of stress and anxiety.

Flooding is damaging and costly. Insurance companies are rethinking and restructuring the way in which they approach and respond to floods for both residential and commercial clients.

The costs related to recent storm events are staggering.

We are starting to panic every time a storm is forecasted largely due to the fact that we have not planned properly.

large-pipes

Effective planning is easier well before construction begins, in the planning and design phases.

Including Green Infrastructure (GI) and LID (low impact development) alternatives in lieu of conventional practices in designs, as set out by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Design, will make a huge impact towards effective and efficient management of stormwater on site, where it lands. Projects including green roofs, rain gardens, bioswales and sustainable permeable paving are designed based on calculations sensitive to stormwater management.

Municipalities are doing their part to motivate and encourage these types of building practices and now, more often than not, there are strict guidelines that must be adhered to.

Stormwater management is no longer something we have the luxury of approaching passively; rather, the inclusion of GI and LID technologies is something that is now in the forefront so we can all stop panicking.

Change can be hard but we are here to answer your questions about sustainable, permeable paving solutions and help provide you with guidance and support. Together we can and we will make a difference!