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WHAT ARE SUDS?

  • SUDS stands for Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems. These are drainage systems which are designed to store water near where it lands as rain, preventing it from becoming surface runoff and carrying pollutants into nearby waterways.

 

  • SuDS deliver multiple benefits in terms of water quality, water quantity, amenity and biodiversity in addition to effectively managing surface water.

  • SUDS can come in many designs, here are just a few of the types of SUDS that are revolutionising urban drainage systems:​

  • Permeable pavements 

  • Ponds/wetlands

  • Green/Blue roofs 

  • Swales 

WHAT'S RETROFITTING?

The term retrofit is employed when SUDS-type approaches are intended to replace and/or augment an existing drainage system in a developed catchment.

 

Examples of retrofit SUDS might be the installation of green roofs, the diversion of roof drainage from a combined sewer system into a garden soakaway, or the conveyance of road runoff via roadside swales into a pond sited in an area of open space.

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Retrofit SUDS may be relevant in any situation where inappropriate stormwater management leads to poor performance of the urban drainage system. 

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