ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade Non-US Electrical Systems & Trades Only New Work?

In the USA, excessive rainfall causing sewage discharges into waterways is only a problem with those cities that have combined storm and sanitary sewer systems.

Cities that have separate storm and sanitary sewer systems do not have a problem with that.

In fact, they want to keep the rain water out of the sewer system as much as possible because often they are charged by the sewage authority for treating the excess water (called "infiltration and inflow").

Brian,

What sort of proportions are we looking at between cities with combined and separate systems? Is this a regional thing, with separate storm drains in areas which tend to get those short-lasting but intense rainstorms?
Around England there are byelaws (local ordinances) in some areas which do not allow the discharge from gutters etc. to go into your home's main sewer line. Other areas seem to allow it, at least partially.

Seems we're on the subject of water services in general at the moment.
Speaking of storm-water, (Kiwi will bite at the bit about this one) I'm told that digging soak-holes and filling them with stones and other things to effect drainage, under the Resource Management Act is now illegal.
That wouldn't worry most people in town,there is a seperate s/water system that takes it away, but those that live out in the more rural parts of NZ, or are intending to live there, this raises an interesting problem.
After you've complied with the rules and piped it off of your property, where is it supposed to go to?.
Not sure what drugs the RMA people had been smoking when they came up with this little gem.
Majority of folks here will just carry on as before and to be honest, there wouldn't be a Building Inspector here that would stand in thier way.

Huh?

Aren't we talking about water which fell out of the sky and would soak into the ground anyway? If it doesn't go into the sewer, or a soakaway, then what exactly are you supposed to do with it? There are millions of such soakaways here for draining rainwater.

People will just ignore rules when they start to be totally illogical or overly burdensome. Before Part P came along in England there were already parts of the building regulations which required notification for certain works on plumbing which were, and still are, widely ignored. Part P electrical has just joined the list of rules which are there to be broken.

Paul,
Yes we are, but, the RMA is not about logical thinking.
And that is why they are to be circumvented.
My advice to anyone looking to dig a soak-hole is, go right ahead, there is nothing stopping you, you are only completing the water cycle as naturally as what you can.
The RMA here is nothing but a pain in the A^$@.
Views expressed here are only those of myself Mike Trump