iWater Toolbox launched – solutions to prevent floods and create attractive cities!

iWater – Integrated Storm Water Management project (2015-2018) provides new approaches and tools for urban planning ─ for greener, safer, more sustainable and attractive cities. The iWater introduces toolbox that provides both basic and detailed knowledge about stormwater management.

The Baltic Sea region together with other parts of the world are facing more frequent and heavier rainfalls, the current planning and management practices have proven to be weak in meeting these challenges.

─ Stormwater management (SWM) is seen often as a complex issue but in the toolbox we have categorized different tools and approaches so that they are easily accessible and in the context to each other. The main features and purpose of each tool is shortly described, and links provided, so one can study interesting topics further, says project researchers and Toolbox content producers Elisa Lähde and Mari Ariluoma from Aalto University Department of Architecture in iWater project.

Lähde and Ariluoma stresses that the content relies on the most recent research literature, but they have also studied practical work that has been done in forerunner cities developing urban stormwater management.

In iWater toolbox, both big picture of SWM and details, can be studied and understood at the same time. The toolbox offers an easy access to the most appropriate tools for the user. All three levels of SWM, namely day-to-day values, technical optimization and urban resilience, are included.

According to Lähde and Ariluoma the main challenges are related to knowledge sharing.

─ There are several studies showing that different stakeholders of SWM have different level of understanding on the issue and especially on additional benefits that green infrastructures are able to deliver. This all makes it hard to change existing practices. However once mutual understanding is created these multifunctional SWM solutions became desirable by all stakeholders. The toolbox provides not only basic knowledge but also tools for evaluation of suggested SWM solutions.

The iWater Toolbox free for everybody to use and share! It provides new solutions that benefits especially landscape architects, architects, and urban planners and designers, including those interested in or working with the design, planning or management of urban water.

Find the Toolbox from here.
Share your feedback with us in order to improve the Toolbox for everyone´s benefit from here.