Our research on stormwater

As a complement to the project on effect-based analysis of stormwater, this project, financed with 290 k SEK by the Swedish EPA, will analyse sediments from stormwater ponds in Örebro, Växjö, Stockholm and Östersund.

This project will analyse and forecast the potential of system change related to making use of the untapped resources in urban stormwater, including the water itself, energy and sediments that accumulate in the urban drainage network.

The aim of this project is to investigate how we can reduce the sources of pollution that are transported from our cities by stormwater.

Temperatures in Sweden are predicted to increase by 3-5°C by 2080, with increases in the frequency of both summer droughts and winter rainfall events predicted. This is a particular challenge for urban areas, where their largely impermeable surfaces reduce recharge of groundwater bodies (contributin...

PFAS, i.e. per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances, are a large group of substances of so-called perpetual chemicals that when dispersed in the environment have a very long half-life and they pose a risk to both human health and the environment. Known point sources include fire training sites, as ...

Stormwater from road surfaces carries a wide range of contaminants, which may cause short- and long-term effects on the aquatic environment when being discharged. The sources of pollutants road runoff differ across locations and seasons.

Urban stormwater transports a complex cocktail of organic chemicals from a variety of sources in the urban environment. Targeted analysis of particular chemicals has demonstrated the presence of hundreds of different organic chemicals in studies of urban stormwater from across the world. However, gi...

It is well known that stormwater affects the quality of urban streams. However, there is still a lack of knowledge regarding to which extent stormwater can alter stream ecology. Environmental DNA (eDNA) is a novel and valuable tool in for biodiversity monitoring and detection of rare species.

In a research project within Co-UDlabs, IKT, Rise and Luleå University of Technology are collaborating on prefabricated stormwater treatment plants that are implemented, especially in traffic areas with high levels of pollution (e.g. tire and road wear particles, brake particles, etc.). However, sta...

Within the EU-project Co-UDLabs, together with Veljko Prodanovic at University of Belgrade, Urban Water Engineering at Luleå University of Technology has received a grant to test the relationship between plant parameters and the water management performance of urban nature based solutions (NBS).

Climate change, combined with ongoing urbanization and the traditional approach of using 'grey infrastructure' for stormwater management, poses major challenges and limits the possibilities for climate adaptation of cities and communities. Nature-based solutions (NBS) are an increasingly popular opt...

The infiltration of stormwater to groundwater offers a range of advantages from stormwater management (a low energy approach to manage runoff) and groundwater management (maintain river and lake water levels) perspectives. However, the practice also poses risks (e.g. contamination). Whilst opportuni...

The aim of the project “StormCompetence - Strengthening researchers’ professional competencies on stormwater management for renovation of UA city infrastructure in the post-war time” is to support a new generation of Ukrainian doctoral students and younger researchers working in stormwater managemen...

The overall aim of this Formas project is to develop innovative, new technologies for area-efficient yet far-reaching treatment of large flows of stormwater from the built environment and stormwater treatment in and near properties for direct use of stormwater in the property.

Within the GreenStorm project, an international consortium is investigating how nature-based stormwater solutions can be adapted to future climate and how models can be used to describe their function and potential for implementation in urban areas.

This research review and synthesis project is undertaken as a collaboration between Luleå University of Technology and Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. The project will synthesize pertinent research findings relevant to a Nordic climate to provide an evidence base of the impact of urban ...

Climate change combined with increasing urbanisation and conventional “grey” infrastructure results in numerous challenges. Ecosystem-based adaptation using Blue-Green infrastructure (BGI) is an important strategy for creating climate-proof cities by delivery of technical, environmental, economic an...

Urbanisation poses challenges, inter alia connected to conventional stormwater infrastructure involving risks for flooding, environmental pollution etc. Transformation towards a sustainable (storm)water management is challenging especially in existing urban areas where the existing sewer network hin...

Problems and challenges connected to flooding, discharge of polluted water and water scarcity are predicted to increase in our cities. Climate change and urbanisation require that stormwater is managed both above and below ground in a safe and cost-effective way. In our cities, space is at a premium...

Blue-green infrastructure (BGI) means using multifunctional green spaces of different sizes and designs in cities instead of grey solutions involving paved, concrete or asphalt surfaces and pipes for (storm)water drainage.

The overall aim with this project is to contribute with knowledge about different treatment components for stormwater and how these can be designed and integrated in densely built areas. The intention is to develop recommendations for municipalities concerning which aspects to be considered in plann...