COURSE EPFL
Autumn 2022

Urban Hydrology
Luca Rossi

Water represents an essential aspect of territorial development. In particular, in the studio approach, the hydraulic structure of the territory is considered as a gateway to following understandings. The reading of the studied perimeter by watershed is the first exercise realized, impacting the rest of the analyses. Historically, the conditions of access and evacuation of water contributed to the development of urban areas. Nowadays, water is becoming more and more important in the territory with the impacts of climate change, new environmental requirements and the will to develop a so-called “urban quality”.

This course addresses water management from a global point of view. The qualitative aspects are considered in priority, in parallel with the quantitative risks. It enables the participants to identify an actual or future problem linked with water management at different scales, as well as to know the administrative and legal requirements in the field of urban hydrology. More generally, it provides the tools and knowledge necessary to understand the challenges of managing and planning urban water systems. In the studio, in parallel, the different technical solutions selected are understood and argued, in a concrete practice of the interdisciplinarity promoted for the sustainable development of cities in urban hydrology.