Guarantee Resource Sufficiency

CONTEXT

Territorial planning must contemplate existing energy and water resources in the determination of optimal areas for new urban developments.

On the local scale, efforts must be made to partially compensate the consumption of energy and water resources by planning neighbourhoods in such a way that they include small-scale photovoltaic plants, district heating(centralised heating/air-conditioning systems), rainwater tanks to reuse water... This ensures the minimisation of the consumption of non-renewable energy resources, while maintaining people’s quality of life.

The space planning and architectural design of residential areas have a significant influence on eco-efficiency and sustainable development, and also on health factors. All improvements made to reduce environmental contamination have a direct or indirect impact on human health.

The planning of sustainable and eco-efficient spaces, facilities and housing (public and private) can be fostered on the local scale. In this way, it is possible to balance the relationships between users and the environment without affecting resources and without compromising the future of subsequent generations.

In addition to saving materials, reducing the use of resources enables a decrease in the emission of greenhouse gases associated with their life cycle. Therefore, eco-efficiency is also a measure to combat climate change.

OBJECTIVE

Foster a sustainable, eco-efficient and healthy territorial and city model.

PROPOSALS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Analyse the environmental dysfunctions of urban planning.
Revitalise river beds and water courses to achieve efficient drainage.
Revitalise the water bodies of green and blue spaces.
Create emblematic parks that contribute to the drainage network to reduce the risk of flooding and improve the management, storage and purification of water.
Plan green infrastructure at public transport stops to improve the sustainable management of rainwater.
Prepare green infrastructure for climate change by restoring rivers in parks, creating opportunities to store rain on high ground, improving the drainage system of gardens and green roofs so they are more sustainable and contribute to preventing the dumping of rainwater into the public water or sewerage network.
Improve the functionality of wetlands by expanding wet habitats to improve the storage and quality of water and reduce the risk of flooding. Restore the surface area of running water bodies and plan new walking and cycling routes.
Design the rehabilitation and conversion of old and unused roads to manage the filtration of surface water on hiking trails and bicycle routes.
Implement passive irrigation techniques in the urban landscape.
Protect and improve local waterways and aquatic environments. Integrate water-sensitive urban design measures that improve the filtration of rainwater using plant life and soil. Reduce the filtration of urban rainwater by managing surface rainwater and using green roofs to increase the filtration and evaporation of water. Improve the courses of waterways through the naturalisation of modified watercourses and river bank plants.
Improve the conservation of residential streets by implementing a water-sensitive urban design. Improve the treatment of rainwater, ensuring that the size and position of runoffs guarantee drainage. • Plant a wide variety of indigenous species suitable for various levels of water depth in wetlands, bioretention areas and park scuppers.
Improve the bioretention of rain gardens on streets and in the car parks of commercial areas: the size and position of the gardens within the urban landscape and their filtration should be in accordance with the characteristics of the area.
In planning consider:
- The available water resources and justify their use.
- The type of buildings to foster the saving and reuse of water.
- Provide water collection systems in separate black water and rainwater networks. Lamination tanks.
- The planned sanitation programmes.
- Plan areas for the establishment of water treatment systems and ensure that existing systems are sufficient for the forecast future growth.
- Determine suitable routes for electricity lines and which areas of non-developable land should be protected from their installation.
- Reserve land for energy infrastructure: renewable energy (wind/photovoltaic/solar), district heating…
- The recommendations on minimum distances between high-voltage lines and housing.
- The areas of the municipality where radio communication facilities are incompatible with other uses.

REFERENCE EXPERIENCES

Information only available in Catalan

Dunkerque. La ciutat s’ha compromès des de l’any 2004 a fer front al canvi climàtic. És una ciutat industrial, molt vinculada al port i a l’economia que se’n desprèn, i a la producció d’energia.
Una de les intervencions urbanístiques més destacades de la ciutat és la que s’està desenvolupant a les antigues drassanes. La ciutat, que ja no pot créixer més en extensió, ha vist en aquestes 42 hectàrees una bona oportunitat per fer-hi un nou districte sostenible, amb una gran varietat d’edificis i espais públics, que enllaci el centre de la ciutat amb el mar. El projecte, anomenat Gran Large Green District Project, ‘from the city to the sea’, es basa en els principis de l’arquitectura bioclimàtica i empra mesures d’alta qualitat ambiental. En una primera fase (1991) s’anomenà Neptuno Project. El projecte inclou: emprar aigua de la pluja per regar els espais públics verds, calefacció de gas i escalfadors via energia solar per l’aigua, sostres verds a les cases, panells solars, un disseny que aprofita i maximitza la ventilació natural, orientació adequada dels edificis...
Una de les accions que es duen a terme a Dunkerque és la combinació i aprofitament d’energia entre la indústria i l’entorn urbà. La Dunkirk Industrial Symbiosis (DIS) és un exemple d’èxit. La DIS es basa en la recuperació de la calor despresa pels gasos de l’empresa d’acer ArcelorMittal, bàsicament. Més de 6000 cases es beneficien d’aquesta calor, que al mateix temps suposa una gran reducció de les emissions de CO2. Això ha propiciat la creació d’una Industrial Waste Heat Network (2010). Aquesta xarxa d’aprofitament d’energia ha reduït les emissions de CO2, ha creat molts llocs de treball directes i indirectes, ha reduït els costos de l’energia i ha variat a l’alça el percentatge emprat d’energies renovables.
- The energy transition: new dialogues between cities & local stakeholders. Energy cities. (2016)
- Susse Georg, Gabriela Garza de Linde, Rebecca Pinheiro-Croisel, Franck Aggeri. Eco-districts and sustainable cities - institutionalization through experimentation. Academy of Management Meeting, Jun 2011, United States. pp.1-38, 2011.
Todmorden. El municipi destaca, principalment, per ser un poble que ha desenvolupat un projecte de menjar local que impregna tota la població. Amb l’objectiu de fomentar una economia al voltant de l’alimentació local s’ha generat una àmplia comunitat (a Community Benefit Society) que planta i cultiva menjar per tots els racons de la ciutat i que al mateix temps crea un entorn molt atractiu.
És una comunitat autosuficient (Incredible Edible Project), que no rep cap tipus de subvenció, només els ingressos dels visitants que participen del ‘tour’ que organitza l’entitat per mostrar el seu projecte, i que es basa en treball dels voluntaris. Tothom que mengi pot participar-hi (If you eat you’re in, és el seu lema).
Aprofiten tots els espais, per insignificants que puguin semblar, per plantar-hi verdures, plantes, herbes... Han construït i col·locat jardineres de tot tipus i totes mides a tot arreu. Així mateix, els aliments que cultiven els ofereixen gratuïtament a qui els vulgui/necessiti.
A més de cultivar aliments arreu, també han reconvertit àrees en desús o en mal estat en parcs de butxaca (Pocket Parks), o espais verds oberts a tothom.
- Chris Hay. Todmorden - a Case Study in Sustainability. Sustainable Architecture and Urban Development. 181-192.
- Re-imagining urban spaces to help revitalise our high streets. Department for Communities and Local Government. London. 2012.