Urbanization is accelerating worldwide, yet urban infrastructure development often fails to keep pace with increasing demands. Our new animated short film vividly illustrates the importance of conscious and integrated urban rainwater management and highlights the environmental and technical challenges that arise in its absence.
Current challenges
In many cities, combined sewer systems are still operating, collecting both wastewater and rainwater in the same network. During heavy rainfall events, these systems are easily overwhelmed, leading to storm overflows, urban flash floods, and overloads at wastewater treatment plants.
Most existing networks were not designed to handle today’s volume and intensity of precipitation. Although separate sewer systems are theoretically more sustainable, they still present numerous practical challenges—especially where natural drainage capacity is already limited.
A sustainable response: infiltration, retention, and reuse
The film explores the potential of regulated rainwater management, including the role of infiltration and retention systems. These solutions help reduce the burden on sewer networks, support the natural water cycle, and enhance climate resilience in urban environments.
Let us build the future one drop at a time.
