Reversing the past? - new approaches to urban drainage in the emscher area

摘要

After one hundred years of industrial development the Emscher area is faced with enormous social changes and the need to restore the environment. Rehabilitation is of utmost importance for its survival. Although the inherited technical drainage system was fully adequate for past needs of coal mining industries, today planning for the future is aggravated by contaminated soils and the predominant collection of all waters in straight channels. Planning for the future also recognizes the need for a clean environment to establish future industrial and living conditions. Special attention has to be paid for the choice of the future drainage system linking source control by infiltration of stormwater with collection and treatment of polluted run-off. Around 1990 a number of feasibility studies for new drainage concepts were conducted leading to a balanced concept of infiltrating stormwater on site, collection and treatment of polluted stormwater as well as central treatment of combined flow at five locations and an extensive program of denaturalization of water courses. A large number of pilot projects already are on the way showing the need for public participation to accept the new technologies.