Green infrastructure and issues in managing urban stormwater congressional research service 3 green infrastructure for urban stormwater management traditional, or gray, infrastructure systems for managing stormwater consist of pipes, storm drains, and concrete storage tanks. Green infrastructure is a term that can encompass a wide array of specific practices, and a number of definitions exist see the epas definition here. Yet, it does not have a single widely recognised or accepted definition wright, 2011. Green infrastructure in fragile states 1 1 scope 1. Green infrastructure is a network of multifunctional green space and other green features, urban and rural, which can deliver quality of life and environmental benefits for communities. Green infrastructure includes a range of approaches for managing stormwater near where it falls. Otherno definition green infrastructure the town should include policies in its official plan that commit to green infrastructure practices through the building, upgrading, and maintenance of its road network, water, and sewer systems in a manner that seeks and encourages opportunities to integrate. Most green infrastructure uses the natural processes of soils and vegetation to capture, slow down, and filter runoff, often allowing it to recharge ground water, but some practices. My research is an evaluation of green infrastructure plans activities in ten locations throughout the united states. Green infrastructure and health national recreation and. Green infrastructure and issues in managing urban stormwater. They include, for example, integrating green infrastructure gi into key policy.
A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title, abstract, and list of authors, clicks on a figure, or views or downloads the fulltext. Site suitability analysis of green infrastructure in austin, tx droughts have plagued texas as far back as the first written meteorological records. Green infrastructure help build sustainable communities. The value of green infrastructure actions is calculated by comparison to the cost of hard infrastructure alternatives, the value of avoided damages, or market preferences that enhance value e. Many green infrastructure elements can be seamlessly integrated into parking lot designs. It also boosts the economy as it attracts business, raises property values, and lowers energy and healthcare costs. Liveable cities are healthy cities over the years, a great number of properties have been defined in order to reflect on the concept of a liveable city. These systems are expensive to construct and maintain. Abbreviation green infrastructure is frequently abbreviated to as gi and green infrastructure planning as gip.
Definition and principles of green infrastructure 3. Begins with an overview of green infrastructure, including defining the term and explaining the environmental, social and economic benefits to communities that employ green infrastructure practices. Green infrastructure environment european commission. Supporting the implementation of green infrastructure. Green infrastructure options to reduce flooding the practices described in this handout can be used to reduce flooding and help communities design a green infrastructure strategy. Gi naturalizes hydrological regimes in built environments by in. These highlighted examples and case studies show how integrating green infrastructure methods. Green infrastructure for southwestern neighborhoods 9 general green infrastructure practices. Green infrastructure is not simply an alternative description for conventional open space. Pdf the concept of green infrastructure gi is gaining political momentum and. A green economy is part of the broader concept of sustainable development but does not replace it, it. It refers readers to strategies, and highlights case studies of local governments that have already taken steps to incorporate a green infrastructure approach. Translating green infrastructure research into decision. Green infrastructure is an approach to water management that protects, restores, or mimics the natural water cycle.
It should be noted that while green infrastructure practices make communities more resilient, flooding might not be totally alleviated. It should be noted that while green infrastructure practices make communities more. Mar 29, 2017 urban green infrastructure green infrastructure will play a key role in achieving eu policy objectives, especially when using nature based solutions to preserve natural capital. Although the lack of a clear and unequivocal definition can lead to. Green infrastructure describes the green spaces and water.
In many cases, it can reduce dependence on grey infrastructure that can be damaging to the environment and biodiversity, and often more expensive to build and maintain. Guide communities in valuing the benefits of potential green infrastructure investments. Green infrastructure economic framework summary report. Documents regarding the green infrastructure municipal handbook. These highlighted examples and case studies show how integrating green infrastructure methods can enhance retrofits and maintenance projects and also provide multiple community benefits.
Gi utilizes the processes of infiltration, evapotranspiration, and capture to reduce the amount of stormwater runoff volume. With a green infrastructure strategy, communities work to preserve and connect open spaces, watersheds, wildlife habitats, parks, and other critical landscapes. Green infrastructure gi is based on the principle that protecting and enhancing nature and natural processes are consciously integrated into spatial planning and territorial development. Managing urban stormwater with green infrastructure. A pathway to sustainable development a holistic view of environmental social and economic wellbeing is indeed the only route to truly sustainable developmentdr asherose migiro introduction. This paper focuses on green infrastructure as a solution, and aims to serve as a tool that will enable local. You may need a pdf reader to view some of the files on this page.
Green infrastructure is defined as an interconnected network of open, green spaces that provide a range of ecosystem services. It will help risk management authorities, planners, landscape architects and drainage engineers to understand and measure the benefits of blue green infrastructure in urban, semiurban and rural settings. Green infrastructure planning is a successfully tested tool to provide environmental, economic and social benefits through natural solutions. Green infrastructure examples for stormwater management in. Municipal policies for managing stormwater with green infrastructure. However, if stormwater management improvements are integral to some other activity like a park or a street project, it should be included in that matrix code 03f for parks, 03k for streets rather than 03i. They present elements of it infrastructure in their threelayer model, which is described in figure 1. Green infrastructure protects the health and diversity of. Potentially a very valuable policy tool, gis multifunctionality. Annex 4 integration of green infrastructure into other policies examples 128. Design, implementation and cost elements of green infrastructure projects 2 utilising the above definition, a threefold approach was applied to gather data for the analysis of european green infrastructure projects and pertinent policy, including a database. Here, floodplains are defined as the flood prone area, i. Green infrastructure will play a key role in achieving eu policy objectives, especially when using nature based solutions to preserve natural capital. Site suitability analysis of green infrastructure in austin, tx.
Green infrastructure can also make use of underutilised land, buildings and neglected urban spaces to provide habitat and connections across the city. Creating and improving the knowledge base remains one of the strategic developments for the implementation of the eu strategy on green infrastructure. Ine th long term, green infrastructure has real benefits in terms of saving money and energy for residents and end users. Percentage of public green space in different world citiesfig 3. The concept of green infrastructure gi is gaining political momentum and has been rapidly introduced. Green infrastructure strategy executive summary es1 executive summary green infrastructure gi is a source control that reduces stormwater runoff volumes, peak flows, andor pollutant loads. These features range in scale, from street trees, green roofs and private gardens through to parks, rivers and woodlands. Green infrastructure opportunities that arise during. Parking lots are a good place to install green infrastructure that can capture stormwater that would usually flow into the sewer system. Green infrastructure and low impact development green infrastructure gi and low impact development lid are two terms that often arise during discussions about water harvesting, especially with the epas focus on using these techniques to help combat nonpoint source pollution. It also provides compelling examples of green infrastructure benefits, demonstrating that components of any comprehensive road and conservation strategy.
Funding options pdf 16 pp, 680 k retrofit policies pdf 23 pp, 2 mb green streets pdf 19 pp, 2 mb rainwater harvesting policies pdf 16 pp, 2 mb. Green infrastructure design considerations best management practices bmps can be incorporated into almost any project. Understanding green infrastructure global green infrastructure. Green infrastructure or bluegreen infrastructure is a network providing the ingredients for solving urban and climatic challenges by building with nature. Green infrastructure uses natural processes to improve water quality and. Green infrastructure gi stands to improve quality of life in many ways, through its environmental, social and economic credentials, based on the multifunctional use of natural capital. Yet, it does not have a single widely recognised or accepted definition. Green infrastructure, within and around cities, plays a vital role in protecting biodiversity and enhancing natures ability to provide important ecosystem services. Green infrastructure gi is a broad term, referring to plants, soils, and built structures purposefully integrated into urban and other built environments. Our working definition of green infrastructure is the natural and built green spaces that use nature and natural processes to manage a variety of challenges, including water quality, reducing flood risk, providing wildlife habitat, improving air quality, and now, improving human. The research seeks to answer the following questions. Definition green infrastructure can be defined as the design and development of infrastructure that works with. Regional green infrastructure at the landscape scale. Green infrastructure also promotes healthy exercise and access to more locally grown food.
They define it infrastructure as the enabling foundation of shared information technology capabilities upon which business depends. The percentage of public green space in cities across the world source. As well as providing advice on the general approach to species selection, tree species selection for green infrastructure. Green infrastructure is defined as the interconnected network of waterways, wetlands, woodlands, wildlife habitats, and other natural areas. Found throughout this site you will find the data and tools your organization needs to develop green infrastructure strategies. Using examples from barcelona, it presents how cities can use green infrastructure to tackle environmental, social and economic. In 2009, guidance on green infrastructure planning was published by natural england, and can be accessed online at this guidance promotes the importance of green infrastructure in placemaking, i. Green infrastructure is essentially creating healthier environments one property at a time through landscape projects that deliver a sustainable return on investment.
The value of green infrastructure center for neighborhood. Future have also been at the fore of documents promoting green infrastructure in the uk. Mckay and brockway 1989 were among the first to describe it infrastructure. A guide for specifiers includes information for over 280 species on their usepotential, size and crown characteristics, natural habitat, environmental tolerance, ornamental qualities, potential issues to be aware of, and notable varieties. Inform decisionmakers and planners about the multiple benefits green infrastructure delivers to communities. Green infrastructure planning and implementation wp5 page 4 7.
It makes communities safer and even helps reduce crime. Pdf green infrastructure plan evaluation frameworks. Species selection for green infrastructure trees and. Green infrastructure case studies university of kansas. Green infrastructure and territorial cohesion greeninfranet. Green infrastructure is a strategically planned network of natural and seminatural areas with other environmental features designed and managed to deliver a wide range of ecosystem services such as water purification, air quality, space for recreation and climate mitigation and adaptation. Hence, we suggest a comprehensive but flexible approach to gi, mainly based on the working definitions used in the european commission ec communication green infrastructure enhancing. Urban green infrastructure european environment agency. The main components of this approach include stormwater management, climate adaptation, less heat stress, more biodiversity, food production, better air quality, sustainable energy production, clean water and healthy soils, as well as. This urbes factsheet outlines the key components of green infrastructure and explores the linkages between the eu green infrastructure strategy and the urban context. For example, some people refer to trees in urban areas as green infrastructure because of the green benefits they provide, while others use green infrastructure to refer to engineered structures such water treatment.
Green infrastructure for london university college london. To promote the benefits of green infrastructure, help communities overcome barriers to using gi, and encourage the use of gi to create sustainable and resilient water infrastructure that improves water quality and supports and revitalizes communities. This report details the variety of green infrastructure and protective measures available to minimize road impacts on wildlife and biodiversity. Currently in fall of 2014 we are in stage 2 water restrictions despite the fact that the heat of summer is behind us, and despite the substantial rain in the recent weeks.
Green infrastructure benefits generally can be divided into five categories of environmental protection. In the strategic documents regarding green infrastructure, the european union. Green infrastructure can include sitespecific management practices as well as watershedscale techniques such as land preservation and the restoration of wetlands and floodplains that naturally store water and reduce runoff. Definition of green infrastructure green infrastructure is a term used to refer to a number of strategies for handling storm precipitation at its source rather than after it has entered a sewer system. This site provides a few examples of projects but is not a complete list of all green infrastructure projects in the region. Green infrastructure and flood management european. The benefi ts of using vegetation in developed areas are well documented for trees in particular4, as it. It then examines the current use of green infrastructure in the city and discusses how the city. Green infrastructure is in line with other eu policy objectives such as sustainable cities, societal health, climate change adaptation, disaster risk management, safeguarding natural capital, and conservation of land, soil, water. The green infrastructure guide the guide provides guidance on how local governments may, using legal and policy strategies, encourage or require more sustainable infrastructure designs. Mar 29, 2017 green infrastructure gi is based on the principle that protecting and enhancing nature and natural processes are consciously integrated into spatial planning and territorial development. Green infrastructure means different things to different people depending on the context in which it is used.
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