cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/8079352
Instead of putting in more drainage pipes, building flood walls and channeling rivers between concrete embankments, which is the usual approach to managing water, Mr. Yu wants to dissipate the destructive force of floodwaters by slowing them and giving them room to spread out.
Mr. Yu calls the concept “sponge city” and says it’s like “doing tai chi with water,” a reference to the Chinese martial art in which an opponent’s energy and moves are redirected, not resisted.
The article mentions the program was started in China in 2015, and I’m sure it’s been done elsewhere earlier. But I don’t think it’s a problem to keep talking about, since a lot of people won’t have heard about it before.
Fair point, I didn’t mean to imply that. You are probably right that it’s new to most people.