As a part of the European biodiversity partnership Biodiversa+, the international research project BioReStorm is underway, focusing on the biological succession of vegetation and microorganisms in nature-based solutions for stormwater management and treatment.

Currently, PhD candidate Swann Maeder-Pras from the project partners ENTPE and the University of Lyon, France, is visiting Luleå University of Technology for a two-and-a-half-month research stay. During her time in Sweden, she is conducting field studies at three stormwater facilities located in Malmö, Växjö, and Sundsvall.

Her work combines detailed surveys of vegetation – including coverage, species diversity, and functional traits – with measurements of infiltration capacity using an open-source infiltrometer she developed for her dissertation together with INRAE-REVERSAAL. In addition, she is analyzing the biological, chemical, and physical properties of the soils at these sites.

Through this international collaboration, BioReStorm aims to deepen understanding of how biodiversity supports resilient and effective stormwater solutions, paving the way for more sustainable urban water management across Europe.

• BioReStorm
• Biodiversa+