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ArrayWater Sensitive Design for Stormwater
02/03/2015
Auckland City Council have released new guidelines entitled, Water Sensitive Design for Stormwater (also known as GD04). This document provides guidance for the application of water sensitive design (WSD) to land use planning and land development, with a specific focus on stormwater and freshwater management.
WSD applies a set of principles to land development to reduce or minimise negative effects on the environment.The emphasis is on the appropriate location, layout and design of development, including its context within the broader catchment and region. WSD can be applied at multiple scales, for structure planning, subdivision and site development, and is appropriate for both greenfield sites and brownfield redevelopment.
A WSD approach takes into account the multiple objectives influencing project outcomes, including urban design, landscape amenity, and community issues and aspirations. In this way, stormwater management is targeted to where the greatest benefit can be achieved, both for the community and the land developer, and is an integral component of good urban design.
New material and approaches adopted by GD04 include:
- A change in focus from LID to WSD and reframing to provide emphasis on freshwater management, particularly stormwater management, throughout all phases of land use planning, design and development
- A WSD definition and set of principles
- An analysis of challenges to WSD implementation
- A discussion of synergies and conflicts between WSD and urban design principle
- Application of WSD principles to brownfield environment
- Guidance on low impact design (LID) was previously provided by the Auckland Regional Council Technical
Guidance on low impact design (LID) was previously provided by the Auckland Regional Council Technical Publication TP124 Low Impact Design Manual for the Auckland Region (2000). GD04 is an update of this document.
