New Stroomi Beach pond aims to improve stormwater drainage

A new sedimentation pond at Stroomi Beach in Tallinn is designed to help manage stormwater during heavy rainfall and improve the quality of Baltic Sea water, ERR reported.

The Lahepea pond, along with connecting ditches and pipes, cost 3 million euros. More than half of the funding came from the Environmental Investment Centre.

Tarvi Thomberg, asset management director at water company Tallinna Vesi, said the pond can store stormwater during heavy rains and slow its flow before it reaches the sea. Sand and other sediment carried from the city settles in the pond, allowing cleaner water to continue into the sea.

Ivar Annus, a professor of urban water systems at Tallinn University of Technology, said Estonia could face more flooding in the future. Although annual precipitation has not necessarily increased, rainfall has become more intense, he said.

Annus said one large structure would not be enough. A comprehensive solution would require numerous local projects to absorb or redirect excess water through properties and green areas alongside roads. The university is also preparing maps of urban stormwater flood risks to identify vulnerable areas across cities.

Marti Vaksmann, head of sewerage asset development at Tallinna Vesi, said the Lahepea pond is part of a wider citywide system intended to help Tallinn cope with climate change. Large stormwater tanks are being built beneath the Hippodrome intersection and along Paldiski Highway, from where water will flow to the pond at a more even rate.

The pond has also attracted wildlife. Ducks appeared after it was put into use at the beginning of summer, and, in cooperation with bird scientists from the University of Tartu, a special staircase was built to help ducklings that cannot yet fly safely leave and re-enter the pond.