Study of the Impacts of Climate Change on the Performances of Constructed Wetlands Managing and Treating Stormwater in Urban Areas

In a time of continuous urbanization, increased stormwater runoff due to expanding impervious surfaces causes downstream erosion and floods and lowers water quality. Constructed wetlands have been developed in the last few decades as environment-friendly and cost-effective alternatives to traditional stormwater management systems. They retain water and help it infiltrate the soil which makes them a useful tool for stormwater management in urban areas. They also act as natural filters and are able to process polluted water to a certain extent.

France has been among the first countries to get interested in constructed wetlands and uses many of them to regulate the flow of rivers like the Seine. The country is also building more and more wetlands for stormwater management and water treatment.

The design and efficiency of constructed wetlands depend on the local climate (temperature, precipitation). With climate change, it is important to consider how constructed wetlands and their performances could be impacted by future climates. Surprisingly, this field has not been studied much yet. This paper identifies the main characteristics of climate change in France according to the area. Then, the impacts of these climatic changes are studied in three different case studies. Solutions to mitigate the impacts of climate change are then proposed.