Water quality management

Water quality management benefits

Our activities lead to numerous pollutants (such as oil, sediments, fertilisers, pesticides, animal waste and litter) that can cause diffuse pollution and adversely affect the environment. Often, this is not managed by traditional piped drainage. Pollutants or contaminants can be washed into sewers and eventually watercourses in surface water runoff, making it difficult to comply with water quality legislation.

Some SuDS components provide water quality improvements by reducing sediment and contaminants from runoff either through settlement or biological breakdown of pollutants. This can improve the quality of downstream water bodies such as streams, rivers, lakes, bathing or shellfish waters. Furthermore, where SuDS reduce flows entering combined sewers, this can lead to reduced combined sewer overflow discharges (controlled discharge of surface water runoff and sewage), again improving the quality of the receiving water body. Such water quality improvements (or prevention of deterioration) can lead to a number of benefits including aesthetic, health (eg reduced risk of infection from bathing) or enhanced recreation and opportunities for wildlife and biodiversity (see the pathway diagram below).
Water quality management benefit pathway