Guido Petrucci

Adaptation of water resources systems to changing society and environment: a statement by the International Association of Hydrological Sciences

ABSTRACT We explore how to address the challenges of adaptation of water resources systems under changing conditions by supporting flexible, resilient and low-regret solutions, coupled with on-going monitoring and evaluation. This will require improved understanding of the linkages between biophysical and social aspects in order to better anticipate the possible future co-evolution of water systems and society. We also present a call to enhance the dialogue and foster the actions of governments, the international scientific community, research funding agencies and additional stakeholders in order to develop effective solutions to support water resources systems adaptation. Finally, we call the scientific community to a renewed and unified effort to deliver an innovative message to stakeholders. Water science is essential to resolve the water crisis, but the effectiveness of solutions depends, inter alia, on the capability of scientists to deliver a new, coherent and technical vision for the future development of water systems. EDITOR D. Koutsoyiannis; ASSOCIATE EDITOR not assigned

A Data Analysis and Modelling Approach to Understand the Role of Urbanization Features on the Hydrological Regime

The impact of urbanization on the hydrological regime is complex and depends on different urban features. Increased imperviousness is the most studied one, but the reduction of buffers (river bed, ponds), increased drainage efficiency, or underground infrastructure interacting with subsurface flows can also be relevant. Classical assessment methods use data analysis on coupled catchments: they are limited by case-studies availability and cannot discriminate between different urban features. We associate here data analysis on 6 catchments in Brussels to detailed modelling, allowing to assess separately the role of different features of urbanization, i.e. imperviousness and ponds filling.

Toward better practices in infiltration regulations for urban stormwater management

Abstract Infiltration of runoff at the plot-scale is increasingly considered as an effective tool to improve urban water management. As a consequence, authorities in different countries adopt regulations prescribing the infiltration of stormwater in new developments. Here we apply a simple sizing procedure for plot-scale infiltration facilities to examine the consequences, in terms of implementation, of typical regulation standards. Considering the relevance of different parameters in the sizing of infiltration facilities, local hydraulic conductivity emerges as the most relevant factor. Because of the importance of local infiltration capacity, current regulation standards based on a single constraint applied everywhere can require from developers highly different compliance efforts and can prove ineffective for stormwater management. We argue that regulations fixing constraints according to plot-scale soil characteristics are feasible and more effective.