UNESCO backs Brighton project to tackle pollution from road drainage

Road surface water is a major cause of pollution, carrying metals and hydrocarbons as well as particles from tyres off the road system and into the surrounding natural environment.

Currently, road drainage water is either channelled into the sewage system or left to soak into the ground. Unfortunately, the latter risks polluting aquifers – layers of rock that can hold and release water – which are vital to supplying water to many urban areas, including Brighton & Hove where 365,000 people rely on the Brighton Chalk Block aquifer for their drinking water.

The project team will measure the improvement in water quality between collected road drainage from the A27 site and the output of the rainscape being installed at Wild Park in Brighton.

Professor Martin Smith, Associate Dean for Research and Knowledge Exchange in the University of Brighton's School of Applied Sciences said: "Road drainage is the third highest cause of water pollution in the UK. Working with the Aquifer Partnership and the Living Coast Biosphere, with the support of UNESCO, we will be able to understand how the Wild Park Rainscape works to remove pollutants and improve water quality. This will show how well the approach works, to promote it to other urban areas, and to help improve the design of future sustainable drainage schemes."

As part of the project, the project team will also work with local schools in Brighton & Hove to develop learning resources around the crucial importance of groundwater aquifers, as well as the workings of the wider water cycle. This work will provide a topical and engaging real-life complement to The Aquifer Partnership's SuDS in Schools outdoor education project.

A global exploration

The research project is one of five environmental projects in Europe being backed as part of a wider UNESCO project – in collaboration with the abrdn Charitable Foundation (aCF) – which also includes locations in Crete, Albania and North Macedonia, Slovenia and Italy.

Running over the next three years, the UNESCO project is designed to promote research related to a range of the global organisation's science intergovernmental programmes: biodiversity, nature-based solutions, ecosystem services, water, the ocean, and the climate.

The programme also ties into UNESCO goals in relation to Education for Sustainable Development, water education and Ocean Literacy, and climate change education working with schools close to project sites – global challenges also at the heart of much University of Brighton research.

About our partners

The Aquifer Partnership

Launched in 2016, The Aquifer Partnership (TAP) is a collaboration between Brighton & Hove City Council, the Environment Agency, South Downs National Park Authority and Southern Water to protect the aquifer of the Brighton chalk block. TAP's work focuses on generating and supporting blue-green solutions for the Brighton Chalk Aquifer, working together with further partners including the universities, schools and The Living Coast on programmes designed to raise awareness, change behaviour and deliver projects to protect our groundwater resources. An estimated 365,000 people rely on the aquifer of the Brighton Chalk Block for their drinking water.

The Living Coast

A designated urban biosphere reserve, The Living Coast stretches between Newhaven and Shoreham-by-Sea in Sussex. From the grassy South Downs to the chalk-and-shingle coast and city streets, it embraces everyone and everything that lives within this area and makes life here possible.

The Wild Park Rainscape

TAP won £1.79m funding from National Highways environmental and Wellbeing Designated Fund to deliver the Wild Park Rainscape. Brighton & Hove City Council are managing the project on behalf of the partnership, and the design is led by Robert Bray Associates. The project is due for completion in September 2023, and a planning application is currently being prepared for submission in autumn 2022.