1. General information
Location and description of the intervention
City or FUA
Ljubljana
Region
Europe
Short description of the intervention
The recreational and educational centre (RIC) area along the Sava river stretches from Tomačevo to Sneberje and totals 144,618 sqm. The area is intended for children, people with disabilities and other residents of the region, visitors and tourists. The intervention made this once degraded, illegal dumping area attractive for those seeking recreation, visitors and tourists, also in the evening as street lighting was installed along the path powered by photovoltaics. A large children's playground offers free socializing and children can develop their basic motor skills, which is exceptionally important in life's early years. (1)
Address

Dajnkova ulica 56, 1000 Ljubljana, Eslovênia
1000 Ljubljana
Slovenia

Location
The NBS is a city-wide initiative, the GIS point marks the centre of the city
Total area
144618.00m²
Type of area before implementation of the NBS
Previous derelict area
Public Greenspace Area
Other
Please specify “other type of area” before implementation of the NBS
Riverbanks
Website of the intervention
http://ljubljanski.projekti.si/ozivitev-bregov-save.aspx
Timeline of intervention
Start date of the intervention (planning process)
2008
Start date of intervention (implementation process)
2010
End date of the intervention
2019
Present stage of the intervention
Completed
Goals of the intervention
The goal of the project was to revitalise the informal waste site on the banks of the river Sava and connect the sport and recreational centres on the Sava with the already functioning ones in the city. In addition, the project aimed at connecting bike and pedestrian paths along the entire Sava bank area in Slovenia. (1 and 2)

Quantitative targets
144,618 square metres of revitalised area, 10 picnic sites, 3 equestrian trails (1 and 2)
Monitoring indicators defined
sqm metres of cleaned area, number of picnic sites and number of riding trails ( 1 and 2)
Sustainability challenge(s) addressed
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Habitat and biodiversity restoration
Green space creation and/or management
Environmental quality
Waste management
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Promote natural styles of landscape design for urban development
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Enabling opportunities for physical activity
Creation of opportunities for recreation
What types of restoration goals are / were defined for the NBS intervention?
Ecosystem-focused
What activities are implemented to realize the restoration goals and targets?
Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
Restore ecological connectivity
Implementation activities
The implementation activities include building horse riding area, picnic space, children playground, small animal farm and biking and pedestrian paths with illumination. The banks were consolidated and applied gravel to the Sava beach. In Ježica, near the tennis courts, next to the stage dam Ljubljana got a new beach. Sava Recreation and Education Center got upgraded. (1 and 2)
Type of NBS project
Creation of new green areas
Transformation of previously derelict areas
Improved governance of green or blue areas
Management and improved protection of rivers and other blue areas
NBS domain and interventions
Ecological domain(s) where the NBS intervention(s) is/are implemented
Grey infrastructure featuring greens
Green playgrounds and school grounds
Riverbank/Lakeside greens
Parks and urban forests
Large urban parks or forests
Vegetation Type
Grass
Trees
Please specify how many trees were planted
Unknown
Please specify other amenities offered by the NBS
Horse riding area, picnic space, small animal farm and biking and pedestrian paths with illumination. (1 and 2)
Amenities offered by the NBS
Benches and drinking water stations
Playgrounds
Sports areas and equipment
Swimming areas
Cultural (museum, concert areas)
Educational and research amenities (nature protection centre, monitoring stations)
Complementing infrastructure (bathrooms, café)
Viewing and outlook points
Other
Services
Expected ecosystem services delivered
Provisioning services
Water (surface and ground water for drinking and non-drinking purposes)
Cultural services
Tourism
Aesthetic appreciation
Recreation
Intellectual interactions (scientific and / or educational)
Scale
Spatial scale
Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Beneficiaries
Primary Beneficiaries
Citizens or community groups
Young people and children
Governance
Governance arrangements
Co-governance with government and non-government actors
Non-government actors
Citizens or community groups
Please specify the roles of the specific government and non-government actor groups involved in the initiative
The main initiative was taken by the City of Ljubljana. Playground was developed based on the initiative of the Prostoroz civic initiative. (1 and 2)
Key actors - initiating organization
Local government/municipality
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Key actors - Other stakeholders involved (besides initiating actors)
National government
Local government/municipality
Citizens or community group
Land owners
Public space owned by the city
Participatory methods/forms of community involvement used
Dissemination of information and education
Policy drivers
NBS intervention implemented in response to an Regional Directive/Strategy
Unknown
Please specify the "Regional Directive/Strategy"
The project is funded partially by the EU funds for Regional Development, suggesting the project is complementary to EU strategies, but none of the documents refers specifically to which.
NBS intervention implemented in response to a national regulations/strategy/plan
Unknown
NBS intervention implemented in response to a local regulation/strategy/plan
Unknown
Mandatory or voluntary intervention
Voluntary (spontaneous)
Enablers
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS vision/strategy/plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Yes
Please specify
Ljubljana Vision 2025
Presence of specific city-level GI/NBS section/part in a more general plan - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
If there is a relevant strategy or plan, please specify the theme / type of the plan.
General municipal plan
Presence of city network or regional partnerships focused on NBS - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Presence of GI / NBS research project - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Subsidies/investment for GI / NBS in the city - mentioned in connection to the project
Unknown
Co-finance for NBS
Yes
Co-financing governance arrangements
Unknown
Was this co-governance arrangement already in place, or was it set up specifically for this NBS?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
€2,000,000 - €4,000,000
What is/was the Cost/Budget (EUR) of the NBS or green infrastructure elements?
Unknown
What are the total amount of expected annual maintenance costs?
Unknown
What is the expected annual maintenance costs of the NBS or GI elements?
Unknown
Please specify cost savings
Unknown
Please specify total cost (EUR)
Consolidation of the banks: unknown, a new beach along the Sava: € 270,000, up-gradation of the Sava Recreation and Education Center:1.065.947 € and revival of the degraded area along the Sava: 1.515.206 € (2)
Source(s) of funding
EU funds
Public national budget
Public local authority budget
Type of fund(s) used
Earmarked public budget
Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Business models
Green densification model
Vacant space model
Which of the involved actors was motivated by this model?
Public actor (e.g. municipality)
Type of innovation
Unknown
Novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Please specify novelty level of the innovation
Unknown
Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Please specify Replicability/Transferability
Unknown
Impacts, benefits
Environmental impacts
Green space and habitat
Increased green space area
Increased conversion of degraded land or soil
Increased ecological connectivity across regeneration sites and scales
Restoration of derelict areas
Description of environmental benefits
1. Carniolan wall was built which strengthens the bank in the area.
2. Set up an outdoor ecological toilet, which promotes the reuse of the biomass by composting.
3. 150,000 m2 of forested areas were built.
4. The project has converted a previously emptied sand waste space into a recreational area for all to enjoy. This also has protected the degraded soil and turned into an aesthetically pleasing place. (1 and 2)
Economic impacts
More sustainable tourism
Description of economic benefits
1. The project is expected to bring more tourism to the area. (1 and 2)
Social and cultural impacts
Safety
Increased perception of safety
Social justice and cohesion
Improved access to urban green space
Health and wellbeing
Improved physical health
Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
Description of social and cultural benefits
1. Access to the river has improved.
2. Walking and cycling (6km) routes along the right bank encourages the citizens to use the space more and promotes physical activity.
3. Photovoltaic lighting next to the existing building (RIC Sava) provides safety to the residents to use the area during the night.
4. Children's playground, climbing wall, trim devices, a disc golf course, an equestrian polygon provides a pace for recreation and relaxation. (1 and 2)
Type of reported impacts
Expected impacts
Achieved impacts
Indicators
144,618 square metres of revitalised area, 10 picnic sites, 3 equestrian trails (2)
Environmental, social and economic impacts
Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
Health and well-being (SDG 3)
Regeneration, land-use and urban development
Analysis of specific impact categories
Job creation: The NBS created ...
No information available
Negative impacts: Did the project cause any problems or concerns?
No information was found regarding negative impacts of the project
COVID-19 pandemic
Unknown as of November, 2020.
Methods of impact monitoring
Process of recording NBS impacts
Collection of monitoring data at specific time intervals during the project to aid evaluation
Methods used to evaluate the impacts of NBS
Observation (including virtual surveillance methods)
Evidence for use of assessment
Presence of an assessment, evaluation and/or monitoring process
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
Yes
Presence of monitoring/evaluation reports
Yes
Link to monitoring/evaluation reports
http://www.greenljubljana.com/funfacts/sava-recreational-and-educational-centre…
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Impact assessment mechanism
Name of any specific impact assessment tools
Unknown
Use of GIS in mapping impacts
No evidence in public records
Citizen involvement
Citizens involvement in assessment/evaluation
Yes
Mode(s) of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Questionnaire
Submission of monitoring data (citizen observation)
Please specify other modes of citizen involvement in evaluation/assessment
Mini survey on the website of the intervention, asking visitors whether they have been to or planning to visit the path along the Sava.
Citizens involvement in the analysis of the assessment/evaluation
Unknown
Follow-up to the evaluation / assessment
Unknown
References
Web links relevant to the intervention
Green Ljubljana's account of RIC Sava
RIC Sava Project website
List of references
1. Green Ljubljana. RIC Sava. (2016) available at http://www.greenljubljana.com/funfacts/sava-recreational-and-educational-centre-ric-sava [website under construction as on 3rd November, 2020]
2. Ljubljana Municipality. Revitalize Sava. available at https://www.ljubljana.si/sl/moja-ljubljana/ljubljana-zate/projekti-mol/ozivitev-bregov-save/. accessed on 3rd November, 2020.
Comments and notes
Additional insights
Municipality of Ljubljana intended that the pedestrian paths extend all the way to Serbia where Sava entres Danube, but there does not seem to be much cooperation going on regional on that (2).
Pictures of the NBS
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/ric_sava_1.jpeg
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/ric_sava_2.jpeg
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/ric_sava_3.jpeg
/sites/default/files/nbs/images/ric_sava_5.jpeg
Public Images
Sava RIC restoration
City of Ljubljana
https://www.ljubljana.si/sl/moja-ljubljana/ljubljana-zate/projekti-mol/ozivitev-bregov-save/