BioInspired! So What? Now What!

As described in the three "Stories from the Trenches" in this issue, ZQ22, and ZQ23, there is growing interest in adapting to flooding not by trying to control nature but by working with it.  The BBC published two articles as part of their COP26 coverage.  

The man turning cities into giant sponges to embrace floods describes Yu Kongjian's "sponge city concept of managing floods that is being rolled out in scores of Chinese cities."  Instead of trying to get rid of the water, a sponge city stores water at the source, slowing down the flow, and providing space for water by moving construction to higher ground.  At the same time, it increases green spaces for humans and wildlife while also helping clean the water.  The image on the right is of the Sanya Mangrove Park developed by Kongjian's Turenscape consulting firm.  The article mentions concerns about the ability of sponge cities to deal with extreme rainfall events, but "hard infrastructure" also struggles with these events which can cause catastrophic flooding when leeves and pumping stations fail unexpectedly.

COP26: Flooding lessons from Hull, a city below sea level describes how Hull, a city of 260,000 that is below the high tide mark, has traditionally relied on "grey infrastructure" of artificial barriers and pumping stations to keep the water at bay.  Initiatives range from "aqua greens" that trap and slow water flows to home construction guidelines that divert rain from city drainage systems.   Lee Pitcher of the Living With Water partnership emphasises systems approaches and working with communities: "We're managing water throughout the system collectively - it doesn't matter where it came from originally, the fact is it's water in someone's garden, potentially in someone's house, or it's on the road and it's holding up traffic."