Enhanced carbon sequestration

Wirral Waters is the largest regeneration project in the UK. It will transform over 500 acres of the Birkenhead docklands into an internationally recognizable destination (where e.g. innovation and sustainability will thrive). (Ref. 1, 2). While the whole project will take up to 30 years to finish, the first phase has started in 2019 and building work has begun on three projects which will bring 1,000 homes and breathe new life into 500 acres of former dockland in the town. £220 million will be invested in the next three to four years alone in an effort to build high quality, high-density accommodation with lots of green space and employment opportunities close by (Ref 10,11).

"Formerly a 10 hectare market gardening site, the Repainville area is rich in environmental potential: ponds, streams, springs ... the aquatic environment is present everywhere. There is a great variety of fauna and flora. As an ecosystem that is particularly rare in urban areas, protection and recovery measures are being undertaken" (Ref. 1). The restoration of the wetland of Repainville is part of a flagship project of the municipality in terms of safeguarding biodiversity in urban areas. With arrangements allowing the public to walk there without harming the biological and natural diversity of the place, the site has an educational dimension in order in particular to make young audiences aware of the preservation of the ecosystem (Ref. 7).

The Natural Park of Collserola (about 8,000 ha) is a forested area in the hilly Northern fringes of Barcelona. Since 1987, Collserola has been managed under a special protection plan and forms part of the European FEDENATUR network that aims at protected fragile peri-urban ecosystem for both their social and ecological functions. The park is jointly managed by a consortium including the Catalan government (Generalitat de Catalunya), the Barcelona Provincial Council (Diputació de Barcelona), the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) as well as all adjacent municipalities (Ref 1).

The gardens of the Rambla de Sants is an elevated linear park (similar to the High line of New York) located in the Sants district of Barcelona (760 meters long and about 6 ha size). It is located over the structure of train and metro lines. It was opened to the public in August of 2016. The gardens include mainly native plantations, playground areas, and other facilities (Ref. 2).

The FUTURE - a project of 100,000 trees in the Porto Metropolitan Area - is a planned and coordinated effort of various organizations and citizens to create and maintain native urban forests in this region, which needs to enrich its biodiversity, sequester carbon, improve quality of air, protect their soil and contribute to a better quality of life for regional people. The 100,000 Trees Project for the Porto Metropolitan Area” intends to restore 100 hectares of urban forest with native trees. (1, 2)

A tree planting programme (part of existing community greening initiative in the Mersey Forest) that is helping to transform Wirral into a thriving economic hub (trees planted on streets including Price Street, Cleveland Street, Argyle Street, and Hamilton Street, which are key transport routes around the Wirral Waters investment area). Trees will also be planted at Wirral Met College, as well as in social housing landscapes and gardens. (Ref. 1, 2). The project was completed in 2015 but similar initiatives have been taking place in Wirral since. There is no apparent connection between these projects and the 2012-15 project. (Ref. 7, 8)

This NBS is Porto’s largest green roof, sometimes referred as the "Fifth Façade Urban Rooftop Garden", the "Olive Trees Garden" is an oasis of 50 olive trees and lush grass on top of a semi-open gallery of shops, restaurants, and cafés with an underground parking garage.
It’s an urban park escape for city workers, tourists, and university students. Located on top of "Praça de Lisboa" (Lisbon square), this is a fantastic concept of urban planning done right: green space co-existing with commerce and vehicles below street level. This project was completed in 2013 as an effort to improve an area in decline in the middle of the cultural centre of Porto by creating a green space for the community (Ref. 1, 2).

The Garden of (Re) Finds, was born in Lille in 1997. It is the first "community garden", directly inspired by the model of the gardens New York, which was created in France (Ref 1). There is an organic vegetable garden, a scented hill, a rainwater harvesting system, a regional hedge of regional species, a compost corner and a convivial shelter in corded wood and vegetal roof (Ref 2).

Opened in June 2006, the Jean-Baptiste Lebas Park, which occupies a space once used for illegal parking and marred by 11 lanes of traffic, is surrounded by the boulevard of the same name. This park plays an important role in creating an urban green space into a derelict grey area. The park helped to increase the biodiversity of the area. It has an area of 3-hectare (7-acre) and it contains a large lawn with flowerbeds, play areas for children and places for playing "boules" (Ref 1).

While Hamburg has already had an impressive green infrastructure, it is now (since 2013) implementing an interconnected green network that will cover the 40 % of its area and support commuting by bicycle, recreation and climate change resilience. The project is planned to be completed by 2034. (Reference 9) The project aims to connect the two green belts, parks, recreational areas, cemeteries and animal habitats to each other with green paths and with the already existing “green axes” leading from the agglomeration to the urban core. The green network could not only absorb more CO2 but also prevent flooding by soaking up an increased amount of rain- and seawater caused by storms. (Reference 1, 2). An extensive network of cycle paths is also being built as part of the project. (Reference 2)