BMPs in urban stormwater management in Denmark and Sweden

Best Management Practices (BMPs) for control of stormwater runoff include structural elemts (structural BMPs) that can be applied on the local scale (e.g. infiltration), the drainage catchment scale (e.g. ponds and treatment, or wetlands) and the receiving water scale (e.g. retrofitting of river reaches), and non-structural BMPs, such as controls of chemicals or building materials, and street sweeping.

The available knowledge of stormwater BMPs performance in pollution control is inconsistent and the effect of various BMPs on receiving water quality is either poorly understood, or not known. A review of recent experiences with selected stormwater BMPs in Denmark and Sweden is presented and discussed with respect to the current issues related to legislation and the forces driving future development in stormwater management.