Low-impact development (U.S. and Canada)

Low-impact development (LID) is a term used in Canada and the United States to describe a land planning and engineering design approach to manage stormwater runoff as part of green infrastructure.

[2] Broadly equivalent terms used elsewhere include Sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) in the United Kingdom (where LID has a different meaning), water-sensitive urban design (WSUD) in Australia, natural drainage systems in Seattle, Washington,[3] "Environmental Site Design" as used by the Maryland Department of the Environment,[4] and "Onsite Stormwater Management", as used by the Washington State Department of Ecology.

[6] Officials found that the traditional practices such as detention ponds and retention basins were not cost-effective and the results did not meet water quality goals.

The LID design approach has received support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and is being promoted as a method to help meet goals of the Clean Water Act.

[7] Various local, state, and federal agency programs have adopted LID requirements in land development codes and implemented them in public works projects.

Filter systems can be designed to remove the primary pollutants of concern from runoff and can be configured in decentralized small-scale inlets.

Capturing and reusing stormwater as a resource helps maintain a site's predevelopment hydrology while creating an additional supply of water for irrigation or other purposes.

The most common limits are: LID has multiple benefits, such as protecting animal habitats, improving management of runoff and flooding, and reducing impervious surfaces.

For example, Dr. Allen Davis from the University of Maryland, College Park conducted research on the runoff management from LID rain gardens.

[16][17] According to the co-benefits approach, LID is an opportunity to technically mitigate urban heat island (UHI) phenomenon with higher compatibilities in cool pavement and green infrastructures.

It is an attempt for people in different disciplines to synergistically think about how to mitigate UHI effects, which is conducive to the generation of holistic policies, guidelines and regulations.