Residents of Tartu's Supilinn district concerned about water drainage
Although rainwater drainage pipes are being installed in Tartu's Supilinn district, currently residents have to drain water from their property themselves.
According to residents of Tartu's Supilinn, the ground in the district has become increasingly soft and damp in recent years. They believe the problem of excessive damp in the area is not just down to high water levels or rainy summers, but because the ground has remained wet even during periods when the weather is dry. To mitigate potential issues, some residents have built embankments in their gardens and raised the level of the ground.
"The problem is definitely getting worse, because rainfall has become more intense and more frequent. When it keeps accumulating and there is nowhere for the rainwater to go, it slowly collects and so you can feel the ground swelling," said Urmas Aunin, a resident of Supilinn.
"It would be great if I could allow my child to go outside with dry clothes and they would still have dry clothes when they come back inside. In the meantime, when there has been more water, we have gone out to the wooden shed in rubber boots," he added.
The City of Tartu is gradually renovating streets in Supilinn with a new storm water drainage system also being built under the ground. According to Deputy Mayor Raimond Tamm (Reform), many of the major streets in the district, such as Tähtvere, Oa, and Kartuli, already have the necessary systems in place.
"The city government has a very specific plan. Namely, during the reconstruction of the streets, storm water drainage pipes will be installed everywhere, which means there will be a drainage system, and if it is now necessary to drain rainwater or excess water from properties, there will be pipes in the streets that can be used to divert it away from Supilinn," explained Tamm.
"The construction of ditches is very problematic here, as the streets are narrow, which means that we would have to take away some of the street space. At the same time, that part of the street is needed by various road users – pedestrians, drivers, and cyclists. That is why a ditch solution is not suitable for this environment. So far, the rainwater drainage system has been completed on many of the most important streets," said Tamm.
However, according to Supilinn residents, in addition to managing rainwater in the streets, it is also necessary to control water levels in their gardens. Locals are critical of the current requirement for each household in the district to manage water levels on their own land, with some fearing it could result in damage to neighboring properties.
"It seems that the residents of Supilinn will have to solve this problem themselves. On the one hand, that is expensive, and on the other hand, many of the houses in Supilinn are built on so-called rafts, and these houses need a certain amount of moisture. If drainage is left entirely to the residents themselves, there is a risk that without careful consideration, drainage on one plot may damage the raft on a neighboring plot, for example," said Indrek Kuusk, a resident of Supilinn.
Supilinn residents now plan to turn to researchers at the University of Tartu to help them combat the problem by mapping out the water flow in the district more accurately.
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Editor: Michael Cole,
