This paper outlines key stormwater management insights from initiation of water cycle management policies across multiple jurisdictions during the last decade. Systems Frameworks for Big Data analysis are presented as powerful processes for framing evidence based policy from the “bottom up” using all available data and integrating spatial and temporal scales of behaviour. It is a profound insight that waterways, land uses and stormwater management are inexorably linked to water cycle and town planning systems and are the foundations of successful water cycle management.
The often overlooked (in favour of discussions about harvesting) integration of soil profiles, vegetation, land uses and waterways in the System Framework policy process is explained. The value of waterway and stormwater management policies and actions are only fully realised from a systems perspective. The Systems Framework analysis of biophysical systems reveals that the behaviours of water cycle systems are cumulative rather than static. This insight indicates the potential exponential impacts of missed opportunities and a need for ongoing diligence to avoid transferring substantial problems to future generations.