Achieved impacts

Abandoibarra is an area of ​​the town of Bilbao, next to the Bilbao estuary, sizing ​​348,500 square meters. Abandoibarra has been the industrial zone of Bilbao, where shipyards and other companies related to the industrial sector were located. Building upon the 1997 master plan completed by Balmori Associates, Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects and Aguinaga y Asociados, the area has been reinvented as an international cultural district and tourist destination. Two-thirds of the 30-hectare site is dedicated to parks and open spaces, creating a public oasis and grounds for a suite of buildings by master architects (Ref 1,2).

The company running the Zabalgarbi waste disposal site manages a solid waste–to-energy plant and also houses a mechanical biological treatment (MBT) plant, a composting plant, a landfill and a leachate treatment plant. During construction of the first plant, Zabalgarbi regenerated and recovered the entire Artigas-Arraiz area covering 108 hectares. The area was degraded by shaft mining activity and an opencast quarry. The project aimed at the reforestation and landslide mitigation of this degraded area. Today the area has been reforested, trails were built and space provided for people to enjoy themselves in gardens, picnic areas and along forest tracks. (Ref 1)

Zorrotzaurre is an artificial peninsula located within the Deusto district of Bilbao, Spain. It was formed during the 1950s and the 1960s, when a canal was built to facilitate navigation in the estuary of Bilbao. The Zorrotzaurre project is the latest major urban renewal project to commence in Bilbao. It is an integral and sustainable plan that recuperates a currently derelict site to convert it into a new quarter, and which also includes a flood protection system with water tanks to retain water and a flood protection barrier (Ref 1)

The re-urbanization of the Poligono de Levante neighbourhood included the creation of two large urban parks to form a green area of 47 722 m2 and several environmental considerations such as a bridge for fauna (Ref 1), as it is a strategical zone of Palma . It is a combination of different initiatives, some of which include green elements (Ref 1 and Ref 3).

Following an extreme flood event on August 9th 2008 in Glendhu Park, eight houses experienced flooding and many more came within inches of being flooded. Two swales were constructed by Dublin City Council to provide surface water storage to ensure that no flooding will recur in a similar 100-year pluvial event. The swales are designed to self-drain back into the existing surface water sewer system following a severe storm event (Ref. 1).

Owing to the city’s participatory budget, the residents created a well-equipped green recreational square in a vacant area of one of Bydgoszcz's neighbourhoods. The initiative involved the creation of an outdoor gym with several exercise equipment stations, as well as planting pollution-resistant trees and bushes - including oaks, maples, pine and spruce. The initiative aims to manage vacant space and increase access to the green space in this city district [1].

The initiative was funded from the participatory budget of the city and resulted in planting new greenery (including 70 trees and a thousand shrubs) by the local city lake 'Balaton' in Bydgoszcz. The justification of the project in its proposal highlights the practical and aesthetic values of green areas [1].

Southsea Green community garden was developed from a derelict strip of land, to encourage more local growing and spread the message about gardening and volunteering. With time, the garden has transformed into a community green-space (1). Southsea Greenhouse is a collective of gardeners and crafters. The Greenhouse Community Co-operative is transforming wasteland into a community garden and re-investing profits from sales of produce and crafts, back into the local community. Community events and workshops are offered to encourage sharing of local skills and resources, foster a love of the city’s greenspace, and care for wildlife. (3)

Milton Common is the second stage of the multi-million-pound Flooding and Coastal Erosion Risk Management scheme being developed across the north of Portsea Island, from Mountbatten Centre round to Milton Common. The overall project will reduce the risk of coastal flooding and erosion and provide the critical infrastructure the city will need over the next 100 years (6).
As the second phase, Milton Common included the instalment of a new rock revetment as a plans defence, the creation of a coastal path and three new earth bunds with new footpaths (6). The work has also included the demolition of Great Salterns Quay and restoration of the natural mudflat habitat (2,4).
The fully completed scheme will significantly reduce the risk of coastal flooding to Milton Common and the local area over the next 100 years; it will offer protection against a 1 in 500-year flood event providing one of the highest standards of flood protection in the UK outside of London (6).

The revitalization of two parks in Bydgoszcz - on 'Dabrowski’ and 'Liberty’ hills was planned in 2016 and successfully implemented in 2019. The project involved greenery planting, building health paths and outlook points, as well as new benches and a playground. It improved the aesthetic qualities of the parks, supported the effective management of rainwater and reduced noise from the surrounding areas [1].