INTEGRATING RAINWATER HARVESTING TECHNOLOGIES INTO URBAN DRAINAGE NETWORKS FOR FLOOD-RESILIENT SAUDI SMART CITIES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18623/rvd.v23.7580Keywords:
Rainwater Harvesting, Urban Drainage, Flood Resilience, Saudi Smart Cities, Stormwater Management, Low-Impact Development, Sustainable Drainage, Vision 2030, Smart Water Utilization, Urban Flood MitigationAbstract
Saudi cities are expanding through compact housing districts, transit corridors, giga-projects and digitally enabled municipal services, yet many urban drainage networks still operate as fixed conveyance systems that rapidly move rainfall away from streets. In arid environments this approach misses an important opportunity: short, intense rainfall can be captured, detained, treated and reused while simultaneously reducing overload on pipes, culverts and low points. This review develops a practical framework for integrating rainwater harvesting technologies into urban drainage networks for flood-resilient Saudi smart cities. It synthesizes recent research from 2020 to 2025 on urban rainwater harvesting, low-impact development, smart stormwater control, flood susceptibility mapping and Saudi water-policy priorities. The review shows that effective integration depends on treating rooftops, podiums, streets, parks, wadis and detention assets as a connected storage-and-release network rather than as isolated drainage components. Cisterns, modular underground tanks, blue-green roofs, permeable pavements, bioswales, detention basins, forecast-controlled valves and sensor-enabled dashboards can jointly reduce peak discharge, increase non-potable reuse, improve emergency preparedness and strengthen municipal water security. For Saudi contexts, the strongest applications are likely in dense redevelopment zones, pilgrimage cities, new smart-city districts and flood-prone wadi interfaces where imperviousness, steep catchments and high-value infrastructure converge. The paper contributes a Saudi-aligned design architecture, a review methodology, performance indicators and implementation priorities for engineers, planners and decision-makers seeking to transform stormwater from a flood liability into a managed urban resource.
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