Droughts and Floods
The UK is going to be impacted by serious droughts and floods within the next 30 years. There is a 1 in 4 chance of a severe drought between now and 2050. 1 in 6 properties in England are at risk of flooding, and since 2013 we have seen 85,000 new homes built within areas of high flood risk.
The National Infrastructure Assessment called for action over the next 30 years to improve the resilience in the water supply in terms of growing pressures from climate change which includes a 50% reduction in leakages by 2050, widespread smart metering by 2030, and new water supply infrastructure.
When thinking about changes to the distribution of water around the planet, it's not just knowing where it rains or doesn't, but also how much, and how frequently heavy rain falls versus light rain. Rainfall amount impacts soil saturation and how high streams and rivers rise, which then changes their capacity to hold more in the event of another storm. Lack of rain stresses vegetation and supplemental water reserves, and when their frequency increases, those reserves are less likely to recover before the next dry spell.
Attenuation is installed in the majority of new build sites, but they only answer one of the two problems we will be facing, to prevent flooding. Whereas active attenuation will answer both problems at the same time!
Active attenuation slowly discharges water at a suitable rate to prevent flooding in storm situations whilst retaining water for reuse at all other times. Using intelligent Stormharvester software we are able to link to real-time MET office data which controls a valve to retain or release water from the tank. Our software can predict storm events and how much percentage capacity of the attenuation tank is needed to prevent flooding. Should the tank have a large volume of stored water, the valve will open and drain the tank to a safe capacity level, thereby not wasting precious rainwater but still reducing the risk of flooding.
Climate change is a real threat. Severe droughts and floods are predicted to be a common occurrence by 2050. Active attenuation can help futureproof our buildings to prevent floods and use rainwater as a replacement for mains water, thereby mitigating droughts. Tomorrow, we will be continuing to discuss “the problem” and investigate Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS).
To find out more about active attenuation, watch our short video… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hh9HAcOTVkg
Links:
RAA40673 I PC I Bricks Water 2 Report I DJL I F (2 page).pdf
