Environmental quality

The green wall outside of the garden section of Leroy Merlin in Zlotniki near Poznan. First of such projects in a shopping mall in Poland which was designed already at the planning stages of the building infrastructure. It serves both ecological and marketing purposes [1,2].

The aim of the project was to protect and enhance the areas of core nature conservation interest and adopt environmental management principles to help reduce the impact of management operations on the environment. Linn park and Local Nature Reserve (LNR) is the second-largest park in the city. Linn Park comprises a mosaic of riparian woodland along the White Cart corridor principally broadleaf in character, mixed woodland plantation blocks connected by a series of mixed-species shelterbelts, scrub, meadow, amenity grassland, and parkland trees. The woodland provides habitat for a great variety and number of birds both resident and migratory. Some areas of the woodland have good ground flora diversity including the occurrence of Bluebells (Hyacinthoides non-scripta) in patches.
The park is particularly of note for its floristic and bird diversity with some 250 and 60 species recorded respectively. Some animals and plants of interest include Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar), Otter (Lutra lutra) and Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis) and Great-spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) and Toothwort (Lathraea squamaria) in the woodlands. It is scarce in Scotland and Linn Park and is one of only 3 sites in Glasgow this species is found (Ref 4). Linn Park and Local Nature Reserve (LNR) was awarded a Green Flag in 2013. The Green Flag Award is the benchmark national standard for quality parks and green spaces (Ref. 3).

In September 2011, a new eco-friendly student village ‘The Green’ opened to students at the University of Bradford. The new eco-village "The Green" has been designed to incorporate a range of features to enable students to live in a more sustainable way. It is part of a broader sustainability initiative by the University of Bradford called 'ecoversity' and its development is clustered around a pond, which is a part of a sustainable urban drainage system (SUDs). The Urban Pond/biodiversity pond – at The Green increases the biodiversity of the site. The site has been designed and landscaped with nature in mind, consisting of grassed areas, a wildflower border, shrubberies and native trees. (ref 3) The £30.4million development was the first multi-residential building in the UK - and one of only 15 buildings worldwide (ref 7).

Vine Court is a student residential complex located at the heart of the University’s city campus. It is equipped with both green and brown roofs, providing environmentally friendly habitats for local flora and fauna, utilizing local plant mixes and building material rubble from the excavated site. (Reference 2). It is at the forefront of sustainable residential development in the UK higher education sector and it was built to a high standard of sustainable design and energy performance. In addition to the eco-technologies incorporated into the structure, the brickwork includes built-in nest boxes for swifts and bats. It has been awarded a design stage BREEAM Excellent certification (Reference 1).

The Mab Lane Community Woodland was planted on a former playing field at Mab lane and Croxdale Road West in Liverpool. It is a part of the larger Mersey Forest initiative which has been increasing the amount of woodland and green spaces across Cheshire and Merseyside since 1991.
The new woodland which has a network of native trees, wildflower meadows a community orchard as well as seasonal wetland areas and footpaths, was officially opened by the local community in 2010. It also includes new pathways for walkers and cyclists and areas for family picnics (Ref. 2, 10). Mab Lane Community Woodland is a partnership project involving the Forestry Commission, Northwest Development Agency, Mersey Forest, Big Lottery, Riverside Group, Liverpool City Council and the Local Community (Ref. 10).

Nancy has the most community gardens in France. While these gardens are generally designed at the initiative of associations or collectives of inhabitants, in Nancy, they are part of the urban development plans.
This demonstrates a real desire from the city to bring the inhabitants closer to sustainable development while providing them with the means to create greenery in the heart of the city (Ref. 1). The Plateau-de-Haye district, where green space was recently created, allowed the emergence of many plots (Ref. 2).

"Nancy Grand Coeur" is the name of an urban renewal planning project in Nancy, which included several blue and green interventions. This area of Nancy received in 2009 the "EcoQuartier" (Eco-District) French label even though the renewal planning works started later, and are still ongoing. "Completely remodeling this district to make it an engaging "facade", adapted to the lifestyles of the time and to the evolutions of modern town planning (diversity of activities, fluidity of travel, sustainable development ...): that is all aims of the Nancy Grand Coeur operation" (Ref. 3).

In their application for funds from the city’s participatory budget, the citizens introduced the cleaning of the river Glowna (riverbed and riverbank) in Poznan along the entire length of the river within the city area (excluding private and inaccessible areas). The initiative aimed to clean the stream and to increase the attractiveness of the riverside. The action was implemented with the voluntary help of the residents as a way of promoting ecological behaviours [1].

In 1995 the city of Munich decided to implement a new green residential district in the derelict area of the former Munich-Riem airport which was closed in 1992. (Reference 9) The area was designed to have an intensively used residential area in the north and an extensively used green recreational area in the south. The project was completed in 2005. It is 210 hectares large, making it the third-largest public park in Munich. (Reference 1) The park includes a 10-hectare large artificial lake, a 15-hectare large forest and two 20 meter high artificial observation and toboggan hills made from the demolition material of the former airport. (Reference 9) The park is appreciated by people but concerns about the loss of biodiversity have been raised. Citizens use the park for walking, cycling, swimming in the lake or simply for relaxation. (Reference 4)

In 2007 the Lisboa City Hall began the development of a strategy for urban agriculture, having created in 2011 several allotment parks. Beyond the provision of plots, the Council also provided the fences, shelters for storage, water irrigation, training and technical support. In 2011 there were already 56 plots of 150 m2 at a location named Granja Farm (2)