Sustainable Drainage Systems for transitioning to sustainable urban flood management in the European Union: A review

Technical and governing approaches to urban flooding in the European Union (EU) are currently conventional and centralised. This widespread paradigm has become increasingly ineffective and needs radical transformation. A promising alternative strategy involves the development of Sustainable Drainage Systems (SuDS), which mimic natural processes to manage floods. In this article, the effects of SuDS, as a transitional pathway from conventional to sustainable flood management, are reviewed. Levels of development and support of SuDS in various contexts and at different scales within the European Union are also examined. Scholarly work to date has been limited and technically focused. The transition remains a local, slow, and mainly northern European phenomenon. The research attention on technical performance indicates a continuing need for evidence of the effectiveness of SuDS. Further research is needed to gain a broad-based perspective on the transformation process. •Research on the transformative capability of SuDS remains limited.•No global perspective can be gained in the literature on the transition.•Further academic work is needed on social change and comprehensive projects.•In practice, transitioning has been a local and mainly technical phenomenon.•Northern countries are the leaders in the transition in storm-water management.