STORMWATER NATURE POCKETS: A CASE FOR USING GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE TO CREATE ENGAGING CHILDHOOD SPACES

Urban areas require stormwater management.Recently there has been a movement towards more nature-based,green infrastructure approaches for managing stormwater.These systems have also demonstrated additional ecosystem benefits much needed in urban areas.At the same time,decades of research support the need for access to nature for healthy childhood development.Designing and locating nature-based stormwater systems where children frequent renders systems as multi-functional spaces,providing synergetic opportunities,which benefit individuals and communities.Challenges to integrating these spaces include safety,cost,and management,all of which can be overcome by smart and appropriate design.Such design requires collaboration between different skillsets and stakeholders through some minimal,but essential changes in the consultation and design process.Ultimately,integrating nature-based stormwater practices into children’s outdoor spaces will provide economic,environmental,and social benefits to urban areas.

Construction of green infrastructure in coal-resource based city： a case study in Xuzhou urban area

As an important coal-resource based city in eastern China, coal mining activities have greatly promoted economic development to Xuzhou while resulted in kinds of blocks for sustainable development. Subsidence areas caused by coal mining activities and rapid urbanization process led to the losing of ecological function and decreasing of landscape connectivity in the city. As the important life-support system, urban green infrastructure （GI as short） has great significance in improving human well-beings. Taking Xuzhou urban area as the study object, this paper proposed a green infrastructure construction method based on the principle of ecological priority. Firstly, key ecological patches were identified by GIS and RS methods. Secondly, we established corridors by minimum cost path model. Then, we built GI network and evaluated the ecological importance of different patches. Finally, by comparing the status of patches and coal mining subsidence areas, we proposed a framework for constructing GI network in Xuzhou urban area.

Spatial Process of Green Infrastructure Changes Associated with Rapid Urbanization in Shenzhen,China

Through a case study of Shenzhen City,China,this study focused on a quantitative method for analyzing the spatial processes involved in green infrastructure changes associated with rapid urbanization.Based on RS,GIS and SPSS statistics software,the approach includes selection of the square analysis units and representative landscape metrics,quantification of the change types of landscape metrics in all analysis units through two indices and hierarchical cluster analysis of the above analysis units with different landscape metric change types(i.e.spatial attributes).The analyses verify that there is a significant sequence of continuous changes in green infrastructure in Shenzhen.They are the perforation,the segmentation,the fragmentation,the evanescence and the filling-in processes,which have a good spatio-temporal correspondence with urbanization and reflect the synthetic influence of urban planning,government policies and landforms.Compared with other studies on quantifying the spatial pattern,this study provides an alternative probe into linking the spatial pattern to spatial processes and the corresponding ecological processes in the future.These spatio-temporal processes offer many opportunities for identifying,protecting and restoring key elements in an urban green infrastructure network for areas in the early stages of urbanization or for non-urbanized areas.

Green Infrastructure Practice and a Sustainability Key Performance Indicators Framework for Neighbourhood-Level Construction of Sponge City Programme

In recent years, the Sponge City program (SCP) of China, as a sustainable stormwater management approach, has been strengthened as a national strategic level program. The Green Infrastructure (GI), due to its multi-objective and multi-benefits, has been adopted as an important measure of this new nationwide initiative. However, there is a lack of a comprehensive quantitative evaluation system for neighbourhood scale SCP. Hence, in the process of GI plan optimization, selection of implementation methods to balance its multi-benefits has become one of the key obstacles in the practice of SCP. To support robust decision making on multi-objective GI planning and comprehensive assessment, the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) has been used as a structural and systematic technique. In addition, a set of sustainability key performance indicators (KPIs) including requisite dimensions is the foundation for neighbourhood scale sustainability. Hence, AHP-based evaluation system including selection, weighting and ranking of the KPIs, is defined as a key performance indicator framework (KPIF), which is still in need for further development. Taking the GI planning for the Liangnong, Siming Lake sponge node restoration as an example, this paper develops KPIF with a comprehensive evaluation system for high-quality “Sponge Node” transitional construction. This KPIF consists of three basic criteria: “Environmental Performance”, “Economic and Adaptability Performance”, and “Social-cultural Performance and Wellbeing Performance”. In addition, 15 weighted KPIs are concluded and amongst them, the followings were relatively high: weight of the ATRCR, the promotion of biodiversity, the construction cost saving, the maintenance cost saving, and the level of recreational and wellbeing improvements for all people. In addition, the developed KPIF provides a reference for similar program’s decision-making, not only for the Jiangnan area of China, but also for quantitatively comprehensive evaluations of SCP in other regions.

The Value of Green Infrastructure in Crafting Sustainability

Sustainability is one of the most-mentioned words from the UN seminars to local community meetings, it is the issue of the world. The emerging science of landscape ecology, is learning more and more about the importance of the "linkage" that green infrastructure(GI) provides in maintaining and restoring ecological processes and the health of nature. The world has moved from the industrialization period to sustainability as a growing issue and answering the question of sustainability in different sectors and green infrastructure is trying to answer the request for sustainable infrastructure. Applying the concept and characteristics of green infrastructure is the infrastructural solution in design. This paper tries to see the origins and concepts of green infrastructure and the strong role of green infrastructure as a part of sustainable development.

GIS as an Efficient Tool to Manage Educational Services and Infrastructure in Kuwait

The State of Kuwait Ministry of Education (MoE) has clearly defined land use standards for the location of public schools, and an inventory of reserved lands for future facilities. Unless, there is a geographical efficient tool to manage and plan the education system in a rapidly developing country such as Kuwait there will be huge deficit in such services. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) was used to fill in this gap and effectively evaluate and analyze their facilities and unoccupied lands to ensure they continue to meet the population and future needs of Kuwaiti students. This paper utilized the GIS to inventory, map, and analyze MoE facilities and unoccupied land reservations with a goal of improved planning and decision making. Unfortunately, the initial spatial analysis of the data showed huge percent of districts that have no schools failing to meet the minimum standard of the MoE including kindergartens, primary schools, intermediate schools for girls, intermediate schools for boys, secondary schools for girls and secondary schools for boys at 72%, 71%, 48%, 43%, 54%, and 55% respectively. Such critical results will enable the decision makers to prioritize the immediate action of relocation the schools or widen the services and accessibility. Moreover, the analysis of the data showed a critical and immediate need to reserve land for five districts where they are heavily populated and lacked reserved land. However, based on long term land use plans, there is an urgent need to relocate some land and reserve others to meet the future urbanization plans and population growth.

GIS as an Information Infrastructure for Recovery and Reconstruction after the Great East Japan Earthquake

This study considers the regional characteristics of the Tohoku region and the extent of the damage caused by the Great East Japan Earthquake and makes proposals for recovery and reconstruction of the areas affected by this disaster as well as for a reduction of the impact of natural disasters that may occur in the future with GIS （geographic information systems） as a social infrastructure positioned at the heart of the information infrastructure. Due to the fact that social media that used ICT （information and communication technology） was useful in the days directly after the disaster, it can be said that it is necessary to investigate the provision of an information infrastructure that uses ICT to reduce the impact of disasters. Therefore, this study proposes the construction of a geographical information database using GIS and the provision and sharing of information using social media GIS after discussion of the relationship between the development of the computerization of Japan and GIS as a valid example of using information systems for recovery and reconstruction after the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Structural Analysis of Green Infrastructure in Suzhou Dushu Lake Higher Education District

Green infrastructure (GI) is ecological supporting system for the sustainable development of urban construction,and plays an important role in promoting the urban ecological economic and social development.In this paper,Suzhou Dushu Lake Higher Education District is taken as an example,and landscape ecological resources in Dushu Lake Higher Education District are analyzed on the basis of field investigation.Combining with the relevant theory of green infrastructure,structure of GI in Suzhou Dushu Lake Higher Education District is analyzed and evaluated from hubs,links and sites,and the corresponding optimization strategy is put forward.

Green Infrastructure and Its Inspiration for Urban Green Space System in China

Currently, urban Green Space Systems in China show fragile ecological conditions, the overseas Green Infrastructure is a new idea to construct urban green ecological spaces. Typical Green Infrastructure construction cases in the U. K., such as London greenbelt, park system, green corridor, green chain and Green Grid were studied to analyze problems of China urban Green Space System planning, construction, and management, so as to propose suggestions for improving ecological functions of the urban Green Space System.

Exploring the spatiotemporal relationship between green infrastructure and urban heat island under multi‐source remote sensing imagery:A case study of Fuzhou City

Green Infrastructure(GI)has garnered increasing attention from various regions due to its potential to mitigate urban heat island(UHI),which has been exacerbated by global climate change.This study focuses on the central area of Fuzhou city,one of the“furnace”cities,and aims to explore the correlation between the GI pattern and land surface temperature(LST)in the spring and autumn seasons.The research adopts a multiscale approach,starting from the urban scale and using urban geographic spatial characteristics,multispectral remote sensing data,and morphological spatial pattern analysis(MSPA).Significant MSPA elements were tested and combined with LST to conduct a geographic weighted regression(GWR)experiment.The findings reveal that the UHI in the central area of Fuzhou city has a spatial characteristic of“high temperature in the middle and low temperature around,”which is coupled with a“central scattered and peripheral concentrated”distribution of GI.This suggests that remote sensing data can effectively be utilised for UHI inversion.Additionally,the study finds that the complexity of GI,whether from the perspective of the overall GI pattern or the classification study based on the proportion of the core area,has an impact on the alleviation of UHI in both seasons.In conclusion,this study underscores the importance of a reasonable layout of urban green infrastructure for mitigating UHI.

Application of Urban Green Stormwater Infrastructure in Wetland Park Construction

The positive role of urban green stormwater infrastructure(GIS)and wetland park construction in the process of“sponge city”construction is analyzed by expounding the connotation and problems of“sponge city”construction.Through the analysis of relevant cases,the realization approaches of combing different types of GIS with wetland park landscape design are interpreted,and it is pointed out that different types of GIS can guide the further practice of“sponge city”construction.

Hallmark of a Resilient City: Adoption of Green Infrastructure in African Cities

Dynamic urbanization of African cities has created development trajectories that face systemic challenges in the provision of sustainable and ecologically resilient urban environments. The specific challenges include extensive unregulated growth with informal settlements reflecting poor service levels and high poverty indices, inadequacy in provision of basic services in health, water, housing, transport and communication infrastructure, high reliance on biomass fuels, exposure to environmental stress and implausible climate change coping and mitigation mechanisms among others. Review of extensive literature and synthesis of existing bodies of knowledge on the ecological and management perspectives of urban environments revealed many gaps and understanding of urban transformation processes. The purpose of this review was to contextualize credible pathways for optimization of both ecosystem goods and services from green urban landscapes (Green infrastructure) and non-green infrastructure to ensure sustainable and ecologically resilient urban environments. Attempts were made to rationalize and validate through discussions the benefits of managed urban ecosystems for African cities. On the basis of the evidence from the literature, it is concluded that urban development trajectories that do not embrace multifaceted approaches that deliberately retain and maintain green infrastructure in the urban environment may not be cost-effective. It is recommended that systematic integration of urban forestry concepts in urban planning that involves communities, local and national governments, business entrepreneurs and public and private research institutions provides tenable frameworks for addressing current and future challenges of urbanization in Africa.

Research Progress and Review of Green Infrastructure:Visual Analysis of CiteSpace Based on WOS Database

In recent years,global ecological and environmental problems have gradually become prominent,and green infrastructure(GI),as one of the effective measures to deal with environmental problems,has gradually attracted attention from various fields.In this paper,green infrastructure is taken as the research object,and a total of 1950 related documents in the core database of"web of science"from 1995 to 2021 are taken as the basic data source.By using CiteSpace visualization software,the network of scholars,the distribution characteristics of journals,highly cited articles,prominent keywords,research hotspots and future research trends of related documents are analyzed.The analysis results show that the research on green infrastructure at home and abroad continues to increase;the research on green infrastructure mainly focuses on urban planning,ecosystem services,ecological environment and other issues;the research field of green infrastructure has gradually changed from traditional research fields such as urban planning,architectural engineering and ecology to land use management,urban healthy development,urban sustainable development,physical heat radiation and other fields;at present,research on green infrastructure mainly involves urban planning,ecology and other fields;the future research on green infrastructure will involve the field of physical heat radiation.The purpose is to provide valuable scientific basis and theoretical basis for the future green infrastructure construction in China.

Stormwater Management Practices and Green-Blue Infrastructure in Urban Areas: an Overview

Water quality,flooding risk,and water consumption in urban areas are emerging issues.Urban impervious surfaces increase stormwater runoff,affecting ecosystems and leading to hydrogeological instability and flooding risk.Sustainable urban design strategies can contribute to counteract the negative impact of anthropic activities both at city-scale and global scale.Green and Blue Infrastructure(GBI)approaches,in particular,are an alternative to stormwater traditional management.In Europe,Sustainable Drainage System implementation copes with impervious surfaces to achieve water quality,amenity,and biodiversity increase.Best Management Practices,developed mainly in the USA,focus on specific measures for sustainable stormwater treatment.Water Sensitive Urban Design,spread in Australia and England,also aims to minimise the impact of developed areas preventing flood risk,limiting water consumption and enhancing environmental quality.In the USA and Canada,Low Impact Development offers design strategies to manage runoff and deliver structural practices to mimic predevelopment processes of infiltration,filtration and detention.

GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE PLANNING ON CAMPUS CASE STUDIES FROM UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS-AMHERST

College campuses pride themselves in being leaders in promoting innovation in both technical and theoretical aspects of all fields of study, including sustainability. The drive for sustainability in higher education has become institutionalized in many college campuses in the form of offices of sustainability, as well as membership in the American Association for Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). In parallel, but not always in concert, are more grass-roots efforts by students to promote sustainability through recycling programs, urban agriculture, and similar initiatives. Students are often frustrated between the classroom lessons they learn about sustainability and the slow adoption of sustainable practices in the “real-world,” including on campus. In order to address this issue, faculty have begun to engage students in the sustainability challenges facing their own campuses. The Journal of Green Building showcases these projects in the New Directions in Teaching and Research section of the journal. As part of this series, this article will highlight a course at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst in which students engage in green infrastructure planning projects for the campus.

THE CARE AND FEEDING OF A LONG-TERM INSTITUTIONAL COMMITMENT TO GREEN STORMWATER INFRASTRUCTURE: A CASE STUDY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT

In 2007,the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection issued the first Total Maximum Daily Load(TMDL)in the country based not on a specific pollutant or pollutants,but on impervious cover(IC)(Arnold et al.,2010).The water body in question was Eagleville Brook,a small tributary of the Willimantic River in eastern Connecticut that drains a majority of the University of Connecticut campus.The university is in effect a small city within a largely rural area.Partly as a result of this,there has been a history of“town-gown”tension and controversy with regard to the university’s impact on the water resources of the area.This tension reached a climax in September 2005,when a quarter-mile stretch of the Fenton River,which drains the part of campus not in the Eagleville watershed,ran dry(Merritt,2005).Water quantity concerns were frequently joined by water quality concerns,with area residents complaining about the pollution of their drinking water(Morse,2002).Although the Fenton incident precipitated increased efforts on the part of the university to conserve water,efforts to improve the way that campus addressed stormwater issues lagged behind until the advent of the impervious cover TMDL.In the intervening eight years since the issuance of the“IC-TMDL”-practically the wink of an eye in the deliberate world of land use decision making-the University of Connecticut campus has become a showcase for green stormwater infrastructure(GSI)practices,also known as low impact development(LID)practices.While the IC-TMDL served as the catalyst,an environmental regulation,no matter how innovative,cannot in itself produce such dramatic change.For this to occur a number of interconnected efforts have to come together,including leadership,research,monitoring,coordination,and education both within and without the university community.This paper is an attempt to capture these key elements,consider why they worked(or didn’t),and provide a status report on green storm-water infrastructure on the University of Connecticut campus.

THREE BAYS ESTUARY(BARNSTABLE,CAPE COD)WATERSHED RESTORATION PL AN:A GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE APPROACH

This paper presents an approach described as“non-traditional”for restoring water quality and ecosystem services that have been degraded as a result of excess nitrogen.It focuses on emerging technologies often referred to as green infrastructure.These technologies may provide cost effective alternatives to traditional,gray infrastructure such as sewering and is likely to provide significant co-benefits including the creation of local jobs,the preservation of real estate values,and habitat enhancement.The paper focuses on the Three Bays estuary on Cape Cod to illustrate the benefits and potential of green infrastructure technologies.The Three Bays estuary is presented as a case study and as a representative example of implementation of the broader Cape Cod Water Quality Management Plan Update(208 Plan Update)-a nationally-recognized watershed planning project designed to provide a pathway for the fifteen towns of Cape Cod to achieve compliance with Section 208 of the Clean Water Act.The Three Bays estuary and embayment system is a scenic Cape Cod bay that hosts sailing,kayaking,swimming and shellfishing and is located in the Town of Barnstable.It is comprised of three primary segments that include West Bay,North Bay and Cotuit Bay.Sub-systems include Prince Cove that flows into North Bay,the Narrows that flows between North Bay and Cotuit Bay and Eel Pond that flows into East Bay(see Figure 1).The Massachusetts Estuaries Project(MEP)is a state-sanctioned watershedmodeling project that assesses the conditions of the state’s estuaries and required restoration goals.Its technical report(2006)indicates that the water quality of the Three Bays system has resulted in seriously degraded to moderately degraded habitat.The system is listed as an impaired water body on the US Environmental Protection Agency(EPA)303d list of impaired waters.An approved Total Maximum Daily Load(TMDL)for nitrogen has been established for the embayment.This assessment is supported by more recent empirical water quality data collected within the embayment.The more current data documents a continuing decline in water quality with more common algae blooms(see Figure 2).

四川天府新区BGI复合功能空间分异特征及其景观格局驱动机制研究

蓝绿基础设施(Blue-Green Infrastructure, BGI)是实现适应气候变化战略目标的重要工具.研究BGI景观格局和功能的空间关系,旨在为城市气候适应性建设提供依据.以四川天府新区(含协调管控区)为例,基于遥感影像数据,从气候适应性视角出发,进行BGI复合功能评价和空间分异特征分析,并运用地理探测器进一步揭示景观格局主要驱动因子及驱动机制.结果表明:(1)复合功能等级整体呈现从龙泉山脉向东西两侧递减趋势,高服务功能集中分布在龙泉山脉、彭祖山景区和三岔湖景区东南方向的协调管控区域.(2)复合功能等级空间分布格局整体呈显著空间正向自相关关系,具有显著高高(HH)、低低(LL)、高低(HL)聚集特征.(3)景观组成类型、网络结构要素类型、斑块密度指数(PD)和面积加权平均形状指数(AWMSI)是复合功能空间分异的主要驱动因子;景观组成类型、网络结构要素类型是复合功能空间分异的主要交互驱动因子.研究探明了景观格局对BGI复合功能空间分异的驱动机制,可用于指导研究区城市气候适应性建设.

基于GIS的青岛市绿地景观生态格局与网络构建

定量化研究绿地景观生态格局和网络构建能够为城市绿地系统和国土空间的科学规划提供理论依据与方法支撑。研究基于无线电高空测候(RS)和地理信息系统(GIS)技术,运用总体景观生态格局分析和梯度分析方法,选取12个景观指数,对沿海城市——青岛市的绿地景观生态格局从斑块类型水平和景观水平两方面进行了定量研究。结果表明:斑块类型水平上,区域绿地以大型斑块为主且占优势地位,防护绿地以大中型斑块为主,二者虽空间分布不均匀,但生态效益较好;附属绿地以中小型斑块为主,缺乏大面积绿地建设,景观破碎度高但符合公众游憩需求;公园绿地以小型斑块为主且数量较少,在城区集中分布。景观水平上,城市绿地景观类型较齐全,但整体破碎度高,中部地区景观破碎度高,南部与中北部地区绿地类型多样,景观破碎度高且景观形状较复杂。在此基础上,进而分析了青岛城市绿地景观生态格局存在的问题,提出了“一轴、三核、廊汇成网、节点密布”的城市绿地生态网络优化与构建方案,以提高各类城市绿地连接度水平,发挥绿地生态系统的整体效益。