The Value of Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Stormwater Management: A Case Study of a Traditional Village

Abstract

In recent years, floods have occurred frequently in urban and rural areas around the world, causing heavy casualties and property damage. In contrast, some traditional Chinese villages have never flooded. It is hypothesized that these villages, because of their long-term adaptations to their environment, hold necessary ecological knowledge regarding stormwater management so that damaging flooding can be avoided. Previous studies on the traditional ecological knowledge regarding stormwater management in traditional Chinese villages are mostly qualitative studies, and these fail in their evaluation of the functional performance of stormwater management facilities and measures. Therefore, we use the Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) in our quantitative evaluation of stormwater management in Zhuge, a traditional Chinese village, so as to rationally analyze the traditional ecological knowledge regarding stormwater management in traditional Chinese villages. In order to analyze the functions and efficiency of stormwater management facilities such as ponds, canals, and permeable pavement in Zhuge Village, this study sets out four scenarios: the No Pond Scenario (NO-PO), the No Canal Scenario (NO-CO), the No Permeable Pavement Scenario (NO-PP), and the actual Current Scenario (CS). The SWMM is used to simulate and quantitatively analyze the stormwater hydrological processes of the four scenarios in different rainfall return periods. The following conclusions emerged from our evaluation of the approaches used in Zhuge Village: (1) The rainwater regulation system composed of ponds, canals, and permeable pavement can play a dual role in alleviating rainstorm disasters and fully storing rainwater, achieving the flexible allocation of rainwater resources. It can effectively alleviate the problem of uneven time and space of local rainfall in shallow, hilly areas, reflecting the traditional ecological wisdom of residents in adapting to the local natural environment. (2) As a rainwater regulation device, ponds are very effective in storing water and mitigating periods of intense runoff. (3) The main function of canals is to rapidly drain water and balance rainwater resources. (4) The main function of permeable pavement is to increase rainwater infiltration and reduce the peak runoff and runoff. (5) The use of the SWMM proved effective in both quantifying the results as well as elucidating stormwater management strategies.