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Are Neighborhood-level SUDS Worth it? An Assessment of the Economic Value of Sustainable Urban Drainage System Scenarios Using Cost-Benefit Analyses

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  • Johnson, Daniel
  • Geisendorf, Sylvie

Abstract

Sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS) offer solutions to water quality and quantity problems in stormwater management in urban areas in addition to numerous economic benefits in terms of urban ecosystem services. Cost-benefit analyses (CBA) of individual SUDS measures, such as green roofs and living walls, are investigated, but economic analyses of complete SUDS for neighborhood-level application are still missing. CBA of neighborhood-level SUDS applications can inform practitioners and decision makers for the proper assessment of planned stormwater management projects. This paper estimates the benefits and economic value of urban ecosystem services of SUDS for a neighborhood in Berlin, Germany, and compares these to typical cost estimates found in literature. Benefits quantified include both private and social benefits. Three separate SUDS scenarios with different combinations of measures for the same district are compared in terms of their net present values (NPV), benefit-cost ratio (BCR) and benefit and cost efficiencies. Parameters of the NPV analysis are also analyzed in a sensitivity analysis. Our results show positive NPVs and BCRs above 1 for one scenario in an analysis of private benefits. Inclusion of social benefits yields only slightly improved NPVs and BCRs. Overall, we demonstrate economic feasible SUDS for stormwater management.

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  • Johnson, Daniel & Geisendorf, Sylvie, 2019. "Are Neighborhood-level SUDS Worth it? An Assessment of the Economic Value of Sustainable Urban Drainage System Scenarios Using Cost-Benefit Analyses," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 158(C), pages 194-205.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:158:y:2019:i:c:p:194-205
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.12.024
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    1. Cutter, W. & Pusch, Alexander, 2020. "The Role of Cost, Scale, and Property Attributes in Landowner Choice of Stormwater Management Option," Economics Department, Working Paper Series 1015, Economics Department, Pomona College, revised 12 Aug 2020.
    2. Z. Jia & C. Xu & W. Luo, 2020. "Optimizing Green Infrastructure Implementation with a Land Parcel-Based Credit Trading Approach on Different Spatial Scales," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 34(5), pages 1709-1723, March.
    3. Gert-Jan Wilbers & Karianne de Bruin & Isabel Seifert-Dähnn & Wiebe Lekkerkerk & Hong Li & Monserrat Budding-Polo Ballinas, 2022. "Investing in Urban Blue–Green Infrastructure—Assessing the Costs and Benefits of Stormwater Management in a Peri-Urban Catchment in Oslo, Norway," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-17, February.
    4. Daniel Johnson & Judith Exl & Sylvie Geisendorf, 2021. "The Potential of Stormwater Management in Addressing the Urban Heat Island Effect: An Economic Valuation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-19, August.

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