Policies, institutions, and regulations: PIRs of a stormwater management system.

Urban services, like stormwater management, are complex tasks that depend on many actors and involve activities that fall within several fields of knowledge, but infrastructure solutions have been known for a long time. Recently, the view that urban water should be treated in an integrated way has become more pronounced, breaking the pathway dependency that treated it in isolation. Since the last decade, the perception that policies, institutions, and regulations (PIRs) condition good results has become more pronounced.

Institutional paradigm shift: transitions in stormwater management principles.

In most cities, stormwater systems are part of the invisible and expensive urban infrastructure that plays a vital role in the urban environment but depends on weak institutional and organizational structures. Based on the evidence that solving the issues only from a technological point of view is not sufficient for the provision of stormwater services, in several countries, sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) structures are being implemented, but a new paradigm shift involving a new socio-institutional mentality that meets not only the old but also the new demands of climate and territorial changes, migratory issues, and participatory management is required.