The AQUA Foundation awarded the 2025 AQUA Study Prize to Manuela Schorsy for her outstanding master's thesis entitled “Comparison of rainwater management systems for use (RWB-N) and enhanced rainwater retention (RWB+) in terms of their potential to strengthen the resilience of urban infrastructure”.
The journal “Wasserwirtschaft Wassertechnik” (WWT) published in its December 2025 issue the following contribution by Manuela Schorsy:
Title: „Bewertung von Regenwasserbewirtschaftungsanlagen zur Stärkung der urbanen Resilienz – Ergebnisse einer Masterarbeit“
Edition: 11-12/2025
The article is closely related to her master's thesis supervised by Ralf Minke and Eduard Rott (Institute for Sanitary Engineering, Water Quality and Solid Waste Management). We are very pleased about the successful submission. Parts of this outstanding work are now accessible to a wide audience. This underscores the relevance of the topic and the quality of the research work.
Abstract
The article examines the potential of rainwater management systems (RWB systems) to strengthen the resilience of urban infrastructures in the context of climate change. Various types of systems, such as cisterns, infiltration basins, retention roofs, and tree trenches, were analyzed in terms of their suitability for rainwater utilization, heavy rain prevention, and the promotion of evaporation and infiltration using simulations.
The EPA SWMM and CropWat software tools from the FAO were used for dimensioning and simulation, as well as a collection, storage, and delivery model (ESB model). To illustrate the benefit aspect, the irrigation requirements for To illustrate the benefits, the irrigation requirements for urban green spaces were determined on the basis of real precipitation and climate data for the model areas of Berlin and Cologne over a period of ten years. KOSTRA precipitation data for 5- and 100-year rainfall events were used for heavy rainfall prevention. The results show that the irrigation requirements for urban green spaces in Berlin and Cologne are significantly lower than the requirements for agricultural land.
A long-term simulation was used to calculate the water balance of the individual plant variants for both model areas and transfer it to a multi-criteria analysis. A scoring system enabled a comparative evaluation of the efficiency and spatial requirements of the plants. The results showed that the performance of the systems depends heavily on the local climate and the available space, which underscores the need for site-specific and targeted planning. The Excel-based evaluation tool developed supports planners in selecting suitable systems and will be expanded in the future to include socioeconomic criteria in order to provide an even more comprehensive basis for decision-making.
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