SuDS, WSUD and Blue / Green Infrastructure – what’s the difference?
Note to Reader:
A new blog from Alex Stephenson in the United Kingdom examines water management terminology and what it means for Sustainable Drainage Systems delivery. Read the post and get involved in the discussion. Alex Stephenson is Operations Director of the UK Stormwater Division with Hydro International. He is currently Convenor of the British Water Sustainable Drainage Focus Group.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT: Presented below are several key statements from the Alex Stephenson article. The complete story is posted on the susdrain website. This UK community of practice provides a range of resources for those involved in delivering sustainable drainage systems. The website is an initiative of the Construction Industry Research and Information Association (CIRIA).

Source: Water Sustainability Action Plan for British Columbia, Feb 2004 (http://www.waterbucket.ca/cfa/sites/wbccfa/documents/media/81.pdf )
Sustainable Water Management in a Watershed Context
“Across the globe approaches to sustainable water management are getting more sophisticated as we recognise just how closely intertwined our lives are with the water cycle,” writes Alex Stephenson.
“Now, climate change and more responsible environmental stewardship are driving us to realise that our approaches to water should be much more interconnected – and that integrated urban water management can have highly positive social consequences.”
Terminology
“My problem is that I strongly believe terminology can – and in some cases has – become the enemy of really good water management. Such terms are open to interpretation – or misinterpretation – and to being adopted for differing agendas,” states Alex Stephenson.
He then proceeds to provide his interpretation of four terms: Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD), Green Infrastructure (GI) and Blue Infrastructure.
To Learn More:
To read the complete post by Alex Stephenson, click on SuDS, WSUD and Blue / Green Infrastructure – what’s the difference?
Other Posts by Alex Stephenson
- The Three Crucial Building Blocks to SuDS Progress in the UK Dec 2013
- Are ‘good intentions’ leading us to SuDS heaven or SuDS hell? Oct 2013
- A Step Closer to Clarity on SuDS? Jul 2013
- SuDS, WSUD and Blue/Green Infrastructure – What’s the difference? Jun 2013
- Let’s Talk Treatment ….Apr 2013
- Delivering Sustainable Drainage – Let’s Get Practical Feb 2013
- Floods Crisis: Government Indecision and Delay “Must Stop Now” Nov 2012
- SuDS – Why We All Have to Get it Right Oct 2012
- The Top 7 Unanswered Questions on SuDS Standards Jun 2012
- The Beauty of a Vortex…. May 2012
- When will we have a truly sustainable drainage infrastructure? Mar 2012
- Super-Sewer Debate: A Step Too Far for SuDS? Jan 2012
- At Last we have National SuDS Standards…Jan 2012
- Water White Paper – “Water for Life” Dec 2011
- Raising a Glass to Visionary Flood Prevention Nov 2011
- SuDS or No SuDS – Is that a question? Oct 2011
- Sustainable Drainage Systems – SUDS already ‘so last year?’ Jun 2011
- “Stormwater Management – What about Quality?” Conference (12/5/11) May 2011
- Engineering Nature’s Way – an exciting new initiative May 2011
- We’ve been retrofitting for years ! May 2011
- Flood protection under real threat from funding crisis Feb 2011
The above articles by Alex Stephenson are posted on Engineering Nature’s Way, a dedicated resource for people working with Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS) and flood risk management in the UK.
The View from British Columbia
“For more than a decade, the language used by drainage practitioners around the world has been changing to reflect the evolving objectives in doing business differently. Stormwater Management, Low Impact Development, Sustainable Drainage, Green Infrastructure, RAINwater Management…. what is an appropriate term to use?,” observes Kim Stephens, Executive Director of the Partnership for Water Sustainability in British Columbia.
“In British Columbia, the Water Sustainability Action Plan is endeavouring to provide clarity of meaning so that there will be consistency of understanding province-wide. This led to release of an explanatory document in March 2009.”
To Learn More:
To download a copy of the document, first click on FLASHBACK TO 2009: Stormwater Management, Low Impact Development, Sustainable Drainage, Green Infrastructure, RAINwater Management…. what is an appropriate term to use?