With the UN estimating that by 2050 over 6.5 billion people will live in the world’s cities, green placemaking is now a vital element of sustainable urban development. With pressure on the environment only set to increase, local authorities play the role of ‘green gatekeepers’, with even the most complex spaces presenting opportunities for urban greening.
Softening the link between the built environment and the natural world, green placemaking connects people with green space for the benefit of the planet and public health. Urban green spaces boast environmental, economic and aesthetic advantages, with the potential to have a positive impact on wider major global issues, such as climate change, and also quality of life for city dwellers.
Green infrastructure can also assist in the prevention of flooding, mitigate air and noise pollution, while providing valuable habitats for varied wildlife. It has also been proven to positively contribute to local character and distinctiveness; making a place more attractive for residents and visitors – creating civic pride and enhancing communities.
Green placemaking is based on the principles of biophilic design, which taps into the innate human desire to be connected to natural resources for the benefit of public health and wellbeing. Studies have noted that there is generally 7-8% less crime in areas with access to nature, increases of 4-5% in property prices, as well as a reduction in general stress levels and anxiety.
However, with limited space in busy built-up areas, innovation is needed to create the green spaces of the future. Forward-thinking designs are harnessing green infrastructure within planning applications, or making use of existing unattractive or unused city space. Sprawling rooftop gardens, towering vertical living walls, and man-made forest channels are just some of the visionary examples being employed by local authorities to help nature flourish within urban environments.
Plants can thrive in the unlikeliest of cityscape locations, and when incorporated as part of regeneration schemes, they can significantly enhance urban aesthetics by adding visual interest and depth, while softening harsh man-made landscapes. Creating destinations where people want to live, work and socialise, schemes such as living walls offer ageing town centres a new lease of life, as well as boosting biodiversity and forming homes for wildlife.
Retrofitting green infrastructure is an effective solution to improving existing structures and spaces, while enabling cities adapt to climate change, addressing issues such as air pollution and air quality. These significant health issues cost the country more than £20bn annually and cause around 40,000 premature deaths.
When creating green oasis’ in the heart of city centres, the benefits are clear and measurable; just 1m2 of living wall extracts 2.3kg of CO2 annually from the air; filtering out harmful pollutants created by traffic and construction. The inclusion of pre-grown plant species alongside the installation of soil-based systems, ensures living walls have the best environment for long term survival and continued biodiversity.
There are plenty of examples of local authorities across the UK embracing green infrastructure and retrofitting unlikely spaces to improve placemaking, with success often attributed to the use of green systems as part of wider creative and collaborative strategies; those which address rather than exacerbate the resulting effects of growing populations, on both a global and local level.
With the Environment Act soon to make it mandatory that any new development must demonstrate a minimum of 10% Biodiversity Net Gain, alongside the Government’s ambitious Net Zero decarbonisation strategy, local authorities need to work in collaboration with developers, businesses, architects and communities to ensure green space is incorporated during the early stages of development. For areas where space is in short supply, green retrofit projects should be considered, with a focus on reintroducing nature back into the built environment; without sacrificing prime new construction space.
Urban greening is at the heart of successful placemaking, and innovative solutions such as vertical living walls, can not only solve demand for green infrastructure, but also the issue of dwindling space. Local authorities have the potential to lead the charge to ensure the negative environmental, social and economic impact of growing urban populations is mitigated, while also reaping the benefits that green systems can bring – from improved air quality and combatting carbon, to creating thriving wildlife habitats and enriched communities.
Steve McIntyre is principal urban environment consultant at ANS Global
