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“Put simply: the modern vegetated roof is designed to drain extremely fast. That is not to say no one has considered alternatives,” states Sasha Aguilera. “Slowing down water to create detention has been tried in vegetated roofs, albeit with mixed success. There are a few examples of great success, but replicability and widespread adoption have been difficult to achieve. This is unsurprising, since creating detention in a thin vegetated system is challenging. However, innovations are changing that equation.”

“Currently the cost of managing stormwater runoff is borne by businesses and industries through city water use fees — the more water they use, the higher the bill — but that doesn’t always accurately reflect how much stormwater runoff is created by the businesses,” wrote Francine Kupon. “A parking lot, on the other hand, typically doesn’t consume any water and so doesn’t get a water bill at all, while still contributing to the problem of stormwater runoff because of the large paved areas they operate.”

“Basement flooding is one of the most substantial drivers of natural disaster losses in Canada,” states Dan Sandink. “Our report explores legal tools that could be used to require private property owners in existing developments to better manage excessive rainwater and protect against flood risk. We examine the legal implications of applying these tools in the Canadian municipal context.”

Caught in the middle of the stormwater runoff issue are “urbanized” municipalities, including most boroughs and townships in eastern Cumberland County in Pennsylvania, which are required to reduce stormwater pollution by 60 percent by 2025. There are ways to mitigate the cost through intermunicipal cooperation, Kirk Stoner said, and the county has organized a working group involving all the municipalities required to complete a pollution reduction plan.

The State of California has released a film series to bring to life simple practices that individuals and communities can do to become stewards of their watersheds and slow the flow of stormwater from homes and businesses when the rain returns. “When much of California is facing drought and limited water supplies, capturing and reusing every drop of water will not only be clever, but crucial,” wrote Paula Luu.

“The projected rulemaking addresses a number of key areas of action, particularly the implementation of a specific on-site performance standard in new and redeveloped sites as projects are built. This include establishing a single set of stormwater requirements for all municipal separate sewer systems,” writes Art Haddaway.

“But have you paid attention to what might be leaking off your property when it rains? In the dark ages of subdivision design, rain that fell on roofs, patios and oil-stained driveways was treated as the enemy,” writes Billy Goodnick.

“Interflow is often the dominant drainage path in glaciated landscapes of British Columbia. Even undeveloped sites founded on till and bedrock rarely show overland flow because of interflow pathways. The lesson is that the interflow system is an incredibly important and yet fragile component of a watershed. It is critical for maintaining stream health and our fishery resource,” states Al Jonsson of DFO.

Address affordability, flexibility, site-specific constraints and performance assessment.

“Ailing Northwest rivers and lakes face death not so much by a thousand cuts as by a thousand rainstorms, each flushing filthy runoff into our region’s environmentally and economically important waterways. But work is underway to change this. Low-impact development treats larger volumes of water, is cheaper to maintain, boosts propety values, creates wildlife habitat, and reduces greenhouse gases,” writes Lisa Stiffler.