Flood protection

Győr and its surroundings boast many rivers, streams and lakes, and experiences intense flooding almost every year. The main goal of Nagy-Pándzsa project was to reduce the risk of flood and to regenerate the Nature 2000 area (Reference 7). Due to the reconstruction of the water transporting feature and the reconstruction of the flood-gate, the flood protection could improve and the pollution of waters could decrease. Therefore, the conditions of flora and fauna of waters improved and the size of the utilizable area increased (Reference 8).

Situated in park Spilberk, the garden features a building with a green roof and a garden with various plots. The building is designed to be carbon neutral and reuses rainwater for toilet flushing and for watering the garden plots. The garden is used for horticultural purposes and environmental education, as well as animal and beekeeping. The complex improves the local micro-climate through cooling and humidification and promotes biodiversity. (Ref. 1; Ref. 2; Ref. 5; Ref. 6)

This project worked to revitalize the area along the river Old Ponávka. This involves the creation of walking paths, bike paths, and public playgrounds. (Ref. 1). Stará Ponávka and the adjoining Svitavy drive were built in the 13th century in the original riverbeds of Ponávka and Svitava before their regulation. By revitalizing this watercourse, the city returned water back to the city, made it accessible to people and improved the natural state of the site (Ref. 14).

The redevelopment of the Alcantara square is part of the program A SQUARE IN EACH NEIGHBOURHOOD, implemented by the Municipality of Lisbon in 2017 onward. Besides the road re-organization, the project includes specific elements. The NBS includes the creation of a public garden, cycling path, playground facilities and introduction of new trees (Ref.1). The residents of the neighbourhood were asked to participate. The participation process aimed at obtaining from the citizens an evaluation on different pertinent questions in the experience of the public space, results showed: space for pedestrians, improve green spaces and urban living (Ref.1).

The surface water system in the VINEX location Leidsche Rijn near Utrecht is a special water system. Nowhere in the Netherlands is the surface water of such a large urban area treated in such a sustainable and climate-proof manner (ref. 2). In Leidsche Rijn, a relatively new city district of Utrecht, a sustainable closed circuit water system was introduced including natural wetlands, bioswales, pumping stations and permeable paving which filters stormwater organically. It is viewed as a more sustainable solution compared to traditional stormwater infrastructure because it benefits biodiversity (e.g. by means of fish passages) and prevents the need for storm water facilities and the influx of unfiltered surface water from elsewhere (ref. 1-3).

The Water of Leith is home to a wide diversity of plants and animals. The river performs an important flood control function in the city. A management plan envisions to create a healthy river that flows through a green corridor from the hills to the sea and is a haven for wildlife, is enjoyed and managed by the public, and is valued for its built and cultural heritage. The current intervention is about an extensive Flood Prevention Scheme. Walls and other flood defence measures have been constructed from Murrayfield downstream to Bonnington. A re-modelling exercise is being carried out to include the impact of climate change on the river system and the efficacy of the flood prevention scheme. The Water of Leith Conservation Trust works to conserve and enhance the river, its heritage and wildlife. It also promotes education and recreation and works with volunteers and community groups (ref 1, 2, 3).

The Fechenheimer Mainbogen is the largest undeveloped floodplain area in Frankfurt am Main and a special recreational area in the Frankfurt Green Belt Internal link. Today, the Main Arch is mainly used for agriculture, but still contains numerous relics of a typical floodplain landscape, such as smaller floodplain trees, meadows and wet bank areas. Since 2015, the curve of the Main has been transformed back into a near-natural meadow landscape with water, alluvial forests and meadows in several steps. Animals and plants are given new valuable habitats and places of retreat, and people are given attractive recreational spaces in nature (10).

The South Pennine Moors is a conservation area in the Natura 2000 network. This site is crucial for active blanket bog and is part of two Special Protection Areas in the Birds Directive, including golden plover, dunlin, short-eared owl and merlin, dependent on the blanket bog for breeding and feeding. The conservation status of the site is threatened due to sulphate and nitrate pollution, causing severe depletion of crucial sphagnum moss cover. Fire damage has led to more extreme erosion than if the moorlands had remained sphagnum-rich. The restoration of favourable conditions thereby depends on re-establishing a sphagnum-rich bog. (3)
The project included three Natura 2000 sites, the Peak District Moors (South Pennine Moors Phase 1), South Pennine Moors Phase 2 and South Pennine Moors (3).

The district will initially incorporate 516 new low carbon homes alongside manufacturing, leisure, offices and climate-resilient public realm. (2) The overall approach to landscaping, amenity space and public realm in the scheme is to make use of sustainable drainage techniques, enhance the biodiversity value of the River Aire corridor, provide an appropriate level of landscaped publicly accessible open space, and contribute positively to the overall distinctive sense of place at the site. (12)

"The desire to integrate trees in the heart of Nancy constitutes a long-standing commitment. The first Charter for Trees of Nancy was signed in 1996. Plant diversity was strengthened and the protection of trees accentuated, in particular thanks to the requirements of the Local Urban Planning. In 2013, the new version of the Charter will make it possible to engage all the actors of urban policy to increase protection of the tree, to be vital to biodiversity and to the quality of the living environment" (Ref. 1). "New legal, urban, ecological and social issues have emerged. The old charter now requires improvements in the face of certain evolutions. It was decided to renew it. This new document is in line with the previous one and faces the new issues of the trees in the city" (Ref. 1, p 9).