How Does Urban Development Affect The Environment

Generally, urban development will change, alter, affect or make a significant impact on the environment. The construction of buildings and roads has extensively changed the hydraulic properties of many habitable human settlements. Naturally, some areas have been observed to be less permeable or even impermeable to storm water and these areas are depressed and raised to check ponding or dishing to trap runoff in the environment. The construction of surface and conduit drainages is constructed to drain runoff efficiently and sustainably in well planned urban areas always remove natural vegetation which causes reduction, interception and transpiration of plants in the environment (CSIR, 2000).

These limited vegetation cover in the environment

Runoff from such concretized surfaces has a high velocity in flow during and after rainfall, which increases storm water in drainage systems in built-up areas. This increases peak flow and overland flow volume and decreases natural groundwater flow as percolation is near impossible and evapotranspiration. Urban runoff has increased pollution and contamination of water bodies in the environment, which leads to serious environmental consequences (Parkinson, et al, 2010). The traditional model of storm water management is based on a misconception by people which the main aim is to drain urban runoff as quick as possible from the environment through channels and pipes and this increases peak flows and costs of storm water management in urban system. This type of solution has been observed to promote or transfer flood problems from one section of the basin of an urban area to another section. Urban runoff most time contains large amount of solids and higher concentration of metals and other toxic components during the flowing process as a result of not treating them before discharge (Parkinson, et al,

Various technologies for storm water development have been developed by the IUWM system over the years. These technologies have been applied in many urban areas, they include detention and retention ponds, permeable surfaces, rainwater harvesting, green roof, constructed wetlands, infiltration trenches, grass filter strips, grass swales, pervious pavements, infiltration basin, surface and subsurface groundwater recharge, and other sources control measure (Perkinson, et al, 2010).

Retention