Public perception and acceptance of the sustainable urban drainage system (SUDS) in housing schemes in Malaysia.

A study conducted by The Department of Environment Malaysia shows that there is an increase in
numbers of polluted rivers. One problem is said to be due to indiscriminate dumping of wastes into
the rivers. This phenomenon adversely affects the drainage capacities of rivers which then leads to
more frequent occurrences of floods as well as an increase in the intensity of the floods. The issues
are critical since 97% of the total water use originates from rivers.
In Malaysia, 40-60% of water use comes from the domestic domain. Domestic wastewater gives an
impact on the quality of water. Public involvement is very important in order to control the current
water situation as public contributions to water issues are very significant. In daily activities, the
public pollutes the drainage runoff unconsciously. Increasing urban population causes a massive
impact on human activities, especially in a developing country like Malaysia. In Malaysia,
urbanization has a lot of advantages for the economic sector. Therefore, development needs to be
carried out in order to provide a range of facilities for the population.
On the other hand, living in comfortable and convenient spaces has persuaded many people to
renovate their houses. This then results in an increase in the number of impervious areas because
housing developers only have to comply with providing 10% of open space. Developers usually
choose to maximise the built-up areas to take full advantage of land use and this situation has
resulted in an increase in surface run-off. This is in fact a major cause of flash floods.
Natural filtration devices have been incorporated in Sustainable Urban Drainage System (SUDS) as
a means of imitating natural hydrological processes. They are found to be more effective compared
to the conventional drainage system, and delay filtration and run-off of surface water. SUDS not
only improve the technical approaches of a drainage system, but also assists in `Best Management
Practices' (BMPs). This includes management and maintenance together with better daily water
usage. However, to assist the success of SUDS, public participation should be encouraged. The
wider public and all stakeholders should have a better understanding of SUDS in order to allow
them to get a clearer idea of their potential role. Improvement in the education system, frequent
updates on information and training for maintenance workers are some of the actions that might
influence the implementation of SUDS in Malaysia.