Climate change is more often than not seen as a threat. However, the need to manage extreme rainfall events in urban areas provides an opportunity to integrate the activities of Highway Authorities, Land Drainage Authorities, Planning Authorities, Water Service Providers and Regulators to improve our urban environment. The management of climate change impacts can contribute to the integrative activities required to develop "Sustainable Communities" in an ever changing world and improving the environment for their people.

In order to generate optimum solutions involving contributions from the key stakeholders, there is a need for new enhanced urban drainage models capable of being adapted to meet the need of changing environmental factors such as groundwater levels, vegetation, changing design standards and rainfall. These models will have to be capable of simulating the interactions between surface and pipe flows and will be used in conjunction with whole life cost assessment of solutions within a risk based approach.