Extreme Weather is becoming the new normal…
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Extreme Weather is becoming the new normal, can water smart communities mitigate the impacts?
The baseline of the climate across England is changing, as is what we regard as normal. England and Wales have just experienced their wettest Marches since 1981, with Northern Ireland seeing its wettest on record. In contrast to the previous month being the driest February in 30 years.
Extreme weather is becoming normal. This causes challenges both immediately, in terms of flood risk, drought and poor water quality, and down the line as unpredictable and inconsistent weathers don’t allow for the environment, or our infrastructure, to fully recover.
Intense rain may appear to increase water levels, as we see reservoirs and rivers refill but that’s not the whole story. Fluctuating extremes often doesn’t give the landscape enough time to fully recover; groundwater can’t recharge and the natural protections against flood risk are bypassed with high surface water run off. Capillary action in soils takes time and during short but extreme rainfall the water runs off before it has a chance to be absorbed into the ground sponge.
Are water smart communities the solution?
A water smart community can mitigate flood risk and increase resilience, countering the risks from extreme weather patterns through a combination of proactive attitudes, measures, and strategic planning. Building into new developments natural flood protection will lower flood risks and benefit water reserves during droughts. Green infrastructure such as swales, rain gardens and green roofs all help to capture and absorb rainwater. Dedicated techniques can reduce the amount of surface water run-off that overflows systems and also provides alternative water routes for households and nature during dry periods.
A large part of the Enabling Water Smart Communities project is in engaging communities in this challenge directly. Increased education and public knowledge about the water systems will allow for communities to hold responsibility and raise awareness of water-related risks – where the public can be encouraged to take action to reduce the impacts of extreme weather. Producing a water smart community means using long lasting designs which can be adaptive to challenges we might face. Current solutions are rarely instant and need whole-life maintenance after their implementation to ensure success and engagement.
Very wet and dry periods are becoming more severe as temperatures increase and moisture fuels wet conditions. Likewise, a thirstier atmosphere will lead to drier grounds, intensifying the drier periods.
Water smart communities can tolerate the extreme rainfall and dry spells that are predicted to become more common, providing protection for communities and nature. March 2023 may have been the wettest March in 40 years, but we can expect more extremes like this in the near future.
