Experts on stormwater management and flood protection – report from the 4th GWiOP Congress

On September 3–5, the 4th Congress on Water Management and Flood Protection was held at the Bielany Water Treatment Plant in Kraków. The event was opened by Paweł Kośmider, chairman of the Congress, Stanisław Kracik, 3rd deputy mayor of Kraków, and Mateusz Balcerowicz, president of the Polish State Water Holding Wody Polskie.

Course of the 4th GWiOP Congress: two days of discussion and exchange of experience

On the first day, a plenary session was held focusing on lessons from last year’s flood, flood protection measures in Kraków, challenges related to stormwater and snowmelt, methods of financing climate adaptation projects, and supporting communities in building resilience to the growing flood risk.
During the panel discussion, participants talked about building urban resilience in the face of climate change.

The technical session covered a wide range of issues, from solutions to reduce flood risk and stormwater management, through the sponge city concept, to the creation of green-blue infrastructure and retention in green roof systems.

During the first session of the second day of the Congress, speakers discussed, among other things, issues related to river restoration and retention, the causes of last year’s flood, flood risk reduction plans, necessary changes after the latest disaster, the evolution of flood risk management, the use of mobile pumps, the role of polders, as well as methods for removing chemical compounds from stormwater.
After the lectures, an experts’ debate was held on the introduction of stormwater charges. The participants considered whether they were necessary or redundant and discussed the disadvantages, advantages, opportunities, risks, and threats of the available solutions.

The presentations in the second and final session covered topics such as the use of BIM and digital twins in monitoring hydraulic structures, stormwater outflow control, smart stormwater management and early flood warning, as well as the role of satellites in flood analysis.

Speakers also addressed issues of spatial planning and retention in water management, presenting a modern flood hazard prediction tool; Kraków’s experiences and actions related to combined sewer systems; a flash flood early warning system as a tool for climate change adaptation; the costs of maintaining urban drainage; as well as the retention potential in the face of climate change in Lower Silesia. Experiences with the implementation of LSOP and ATS – integrated systems for real-time hydrometeorological monitoring and warning – were also discussed.

TYTAN awards presented

The culmination of the Congress was a ceremonial gala during which the prestigious TYTAN Awards were presented in the categories Product/Technology of the Year and Project of the Year.

The TYTAN Awards are a well-established brand – statuettes symbolizing prestige, trust, and recognition within the engineering community. Each year, they highlight leaders in innovation, quality, and efficiency in the industry.

The winners were selected by three independent bodies: a jury of experts composed of representatives of academia; the TYTAN Awards Academy, made up of representatives of companies nominated in previous years; and the professional community – individuals voting online.

Each of the decision-making bodies had an equal impact on the final verdict, with the “weight” of votes from each group set at 1/3. The winners in each category were determined based on the percentage sum of the results obtained in the voting by the respective groups.

The TYTAN 2025 statuette in the Product/Technology of the Year category was awarded to Scalgo Live by Scalgo ApS. In the Project of the Year category, the winners were Wodociągi Miasta Krakowa S.A./DHI Polska sp. z o.o., honored with the TYTAN statuette for the Decision Support Platform (Kraken system).

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main photo credit: Quality Studio for www.inzynieria.com

source: INŻYNIERIA