Urban stormwater and the new normal

When we build cities or neighborhoods, we have to plan for where the excess water will go when it rains. Types of stormwater infrastructure vary among different cities or even different parts of the same city. But will this infrastructure be able to handle increased frequency and magnitude of heavy rains expected (and in fact, already observed) under climate change? Ecologists can bring a useful perspective to the design of urban stormwater systems for the future, but these ideas must be evaluated across the huge variation in existing urban conditions.