Applying the “WSUD potential”-tool in the framework of the Copenhagen Climate Adaptation and Cloudburst Management Plans

Water Sensitive Urban Design (WSUD) is still in the “Opportunity”-phase of its stabilization process in Copenhagen, Denmark, indicating that there are controversies surrounding its proper use and the regulatory framework is not completely adapted to the new technology. In 2015 private land owners in Denmark could get up to 100% of the construction costs of climate adaptation measures funded by the utility companies, which resulted in a race to apply for this co-funding plan.

In this study we briefly review the climate adaptation framework in Copenhagen, and then discuss how well different scenarios of WSUD in a case study area interact with this framework. The impacts of the different scenarios are assessed using the “WSUD-potential” tool, which builds upon the Three Points Approach.

The results indicate that there is a schism between the city’s Cloudburst Management Plan on one side and its Climate Adaptation Plan and general service goal on the other side, which may result in over-sizing of the collective stormwater management system.