A stormwater management information system for the catchment area of the River Emscher

In order, in the course of remediating the Emscher river system, to reinforce the ecological potential and the municipal landscaping benefits of the new bodies of water and to limit the costs for technical stormwater management measures, great importance has been attached to coping with stormwater via surface seepage. The potential of such measures depends on many different factors of influence. Consequently it makes sense to prepare a systematic classification for checking and evaluating the use of decentral stormwater management systems. When sufficient data is available, geographical information systems can support the planning of stormwater management measures. In the past, there has been a lack of across-the-board data and evaluations as well as of information on the peripheral conditions and factors resulting from the structure of individual built-up areas. This gap will be closed with the stormwater management information system. The data pool that has been built up contains statements on all the peripheral conditions and factors relevant for deciding on the type and potential of close-to-nature stormwater management methods. The stormwater management information system makes it possible for concepts covering complete catchment areas to be developed and their effectiveness to be evaluated via one single system.