Urban Drainage Group

The Urban Drainage Group and its predecessor WaPUG have a long history of providing guidance to assist the industry to follow best practice. Please find some publications below.

• Code of Practice for the Hydraulic Modelling of Urban Drainage Systems: this best practice guide was updated in 2017 following significant upgrading with engagement with all UK water utility companies. It covers project definition; data collection; model development; verification; model confidence; application of model; documentation and model management.
• UDG rainfall guide: published in 2015 this guide supplements the main modelling guide and provides background to various options for representing rainfall in modelling and provides guidance. This aspect of modelling is anticipated to change more frequently than other aspects due to improved climate change predictions; developments in telemetry and radar technology and improved technologies of handling and analysing large data sets. Therefore this guide is separate for the main guide to allow more frequent updates.
• Event duration modelling good practice guide: this guide published in 2016 collates good practice on Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) monitoring.
• Guide to quality modelling of sewer systems: this guide published in 2006 provides guidance of the production of sewer quality modelling. It supplements the Code of Practice which addresses hydraulic modelling which is the basis of sewer quality models. The modelling of the impact on rivers can be found in the WAPUG River Modelling Guide. Guidance on how these models fit within the framework of Urban Pollution Management can be found in the Urban Pollution Management (UPM) Manual (FWR 1998).
• Integrated urban drainage modelling guide: published in 2009 this guide outlines the different types of modelling approaches taken to model the urban drainage system and how it interacts with the wider water environment. It follows a similar layout to the Code of Practice covering Project planning; Data collection; Integrated Modelling Methods; Verification; Reporting. This report is currently under review for updating.
• River data collection guide: published in 1998 this guide outlines the data collection requirements for a UPM study and supplements the River Modelling Guide.
• River modelling guide: published in 1998 this guide provides guidance of river modelling for use in UPM studies. This report is currently under review for updating.
• The design of CSO chambers to incorporate screens: latest publication in 2006 this guide sets out current best practice in the design of new CSO chambers to meet aesthetic regulatory requirements using screens. It is aimed primarily at design engineers but it should also prove valuable to environmental regulators, operations personnel, sewer network modellers and drainage area planners.

Here are useful summaries of comment details of how to approach modelling specific more complex elements. These were reviewed and rationalised in 2009. They are generated by the group community and further contributions are welcome, please get in touch with the committee if you wish to add any new ones.

• WaPUG User Note 01: Modelling Vortex Flow Control Devices
• WaPUG User Note 02: Modelling Ancillaries: Orifice Coefficients
• WaPUG User Note 05: Management of Above Ground Data for Partially Drained Catchments – Issues for Converting Old Models
• WaPUG User Note 06: Use of Rainfall Data from Flow Surveys
• WaPUG User Note 09: The Wallingford Procedure Percentage Runoff Equation
• WaPUG User Note 13: The Dangers of Force-Fitting
• WaPUG User Note 15: Storage Compensation
• WaPUG User Note 21: Catchment Data for the Wallingford Procedure Percentage Runoff Model
• WaPUG User Note 22: Selection of Tide Levels
• WaPUG User Note 27: Modelling Ancillaries: Weir Coefficients
• WaPUG User Note 28: A New Runoff Model Volume Model
• WaPUG User Note 29: Predicting Flooding Using Hydraulic Models
• WaPUG User Note 32: Evaluating Potential for Real Time Control Checklist of Factors and General Guidance
• WaPUG User Note 33: Modelling Dry Weather Flow
• WaPUG User Note 34: Dynamic Modelling of Wastewater Treatment Processes
• WaPUG User Note 35: Active Trade Effluent Control
• WaPUG User Note 36: Case Study: River Quality Modelling for Urban Pollution Management
• WaPUG User Note 38: Modelling Large Detention Tanks
• WaPUG User Note 39: Use of Rainfall Data from Radar
• WaPUG User Note 40: Coupled 1D – 2D Modelling in Urban Areas

• UDG competency framework
• UDG competency assessment sheet