How can Australian cities combat worsening stormwater issues using nature-based infrastructure? How can policy and water experts, together with governments, prepare our cities to be resilient in the future?
Macquarie University Civil Engineering Graduate, Sam Cook, explores these issues in his thesis titled Analysis of Water Sensitive Urban Design: The Addition of Larger Scale Alternatives and Their Effects on Kerbside WSUD.
Mr Cook compared traditional concrete-heavy stormwater systems with environmentally friendly solutions like green roofs, rain gardens, wetlands, and permeable pavements.
The verdict? Nature wins – but only when its system work together.
Using eWater MUSICX™, Australia’s leading stormwater modelling tool developed by eWater Group, Mr Cook simulated stormwater flow and pollutant removal across a fictional catchment area based on Blacktown City Council data. He tested a variety of Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) configurations, from standalone systems to complex treatment trains, sequences of green technologies working in tandem.
The Pollution Problem
Urbanisation has long been linked with stormwater challenges. Roads, roofs, and other hard surfaces generate runoff laced with sediment, litter, and chemical pollutants. Traditional kerbside systems, such as pipes, gutters, and drains, move water fast but do nothing to treat it.
His research found that traditional systems, such as kerbside stormwater drains, removed zero per cent of common pollutants like nitrogen, phosphorus, and gross solids.
In contrast, the best-performing WSUD combination, which included a green roof, bioretention basin, swale, and constructed wetland, removed:
- 98.88% of Total Suspended Solids
- 95.68% of Total Phosphorus
- 83.2% of Total Nitrogen
- 100% of Gross Pollutants
Want to learn more about Macquarie University’s critical work in this space? Reach out to Dr. Bandita Mainali, Lecturer, Macquarie University’s School of Engineering.
Practical Implications for Australian Cities
The thesis comes at a critical time, with many local governments under pressure to build resilient and climate-smart infrastructure. Mr Cook’s work offers a blueprint but also a caution.
Mr Cook argued in his thesis that a continued reliance on dated kerbside systems could see an increase flash flooding, more polluted waterways, and higher maintenance costs. The way forward, he noted, was that green infrastructure isn’t just better for the environment. It’s better for the bottom line.
Supporting the next generation of water managers
eWater is also proud to work with 15 Australian universities to teach the suite of eWater MUSIC tools delivered by our high calibre of hydrologists and software developers.
Through this partnership, we offer students free access to MUSIC for their research, including Mr Cook. We believe the best way to address future issues is to provide the next generation of urban planners, water engineers and urban development professionals with the skills to sustainable manage our precious waterways.
We thank Macquarie University for partnering with eWater Group for teaching the next generation of urban planners, water engineers and urban development professionals. This partnership equips them with the right skills, knowledge and insights to manage our waterways more sustainably.
What’s Next? Key takeaways?
We thank Mr Cook for his research, in which he urges future planners to prioritise combined WSUD approaches through tools like eWater MUSICX™ to simulate and evaluate solutions and called for the development of standardised performance benchmarks for green infrastructure.
It is this future thinking that encourages us at eWater Group to know that our local environment, from rural and regional to our major cities, is in the best capable hands.
As Australia faces growing urban density and climate unpredictability, this thesis is a timely reminder that working with nature, not against it, may be the best way forward.
Want to learn more about Macquarie University’s critical work in this space? Reach out to Dr. Bandita Mainali, Lecturer, Macquarie University’s School of Engineering.
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