Governance assessment of a blue-green infrastructure project in a small size city in Belgium. The potential of Herentals for a leapfrog to water sensitive

Flores, César Casiano; Vikolainen, Vera; Crompvoets, Joep

doi:10.1016/j.cities.2021.103331

Cited by 15 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…If needed, it is important to analyze how participation can be incorporated at this early stage. Research has identified that trans‐disciplinary science, cross‐sectoral partnerships, and innovation when implementing water projects require institutional development that is not easily found in the early stages of urban water management (Casiano Flores et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward a contextualized research agenda: Governance challenges of the wastewater treatment policy in Mexico and the role of subnational governments

Flores

2022

WIREs Water

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Wastewater treatment is failing worldwide. Like many parts of the world, Mexico and Latin America continue to face significant challenges associated with the implementation of wastewater treatment plant (WTP) policy. Research has identified that wastewater treatment challenges are related to governance failures. To address these challenges, international organizations have proposed approaches such as Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and decentralization. However, these governance approaches have not achieved the intended outcomes and from a scholarly perspective, new frameworks have been developed to understand the context of governance challenges. Yet, an analysis based on Scopus and Web of Science shows that academic research employing such contextual approaches to the WTP policy in Mexico is still scarce. Against this background, the objective of this focus article is to reflect on the current governance challenges of the WTP policy in Mexico and to propose some areas of research that can provide new insights that support the development of a policy tailored to the Mexican context. The few research that has used contextual approaches demonstrated that subnational governments have a key role in the WTP policy in Mexico. Building upon this finding, I encourage the employment of contextual frameworks and the development of interdisciplinary research analyzing the role of subnational governments in the WTP policy. This type of research can provide relevant insights that could help to improve wastewater treatment not only in Mexico but also in other countries with similar governance structures and challenges, as is the case in Latin America.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward a contextualized research agenda: Governance challenges of the wastewater treatment policy in Mexico and the role of subnational governments

Flores

2022

WIREs Water

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“…Despite regional differences, there are several common themes related to BGI implementation are repeated within the literature. For instance, there is a lack of collaboration between public and private sectors and intersectional actors in Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Brazil, and Pakistan (Amaral et al 2021;Casiano Flores et al 2021;Mumtaz 2021;Toxopeus & Polzin 2021;Suleiman 2021). Casiano Flores et al (2021) stressed the importance of multilevel coordination, which often includes different government levels to allocate specific actions and responsibilities concerning BGI in Belgium.…”

Section: Barriers To Bgi Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, there is a lack of collaboration between public and private sectors and intersectional actors in Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Brazil, and Pakistan (Amaral et al 2021;Casiano Flores et al 2021;Mumtaz 2021;Toxopeus & Polzin 2021;Suleiman 2021). Casiano Flores et al (2021) stressed the importance of multilevel coordination, which often includes different government levels to allocate specific actions and responsibilities concerning BGI in Belgium. Toxopeus & Polzin (2021) hinted at a link between the absence of coordination across public and private sectors and obtaining finance for BGI in the Netherlands.…”

Section: Barriers To Bgi Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The potential of Blue-Green infrastructure as a climate change adaptation strategy: a systematic literature review

et al. 2021

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Blue-Green Infrastructure (BGI) consists of natural and semi-natural systems implemented to mitigate climate change impacts in urban areas, including elevated air temperatures and flooding. This study is a state-of-the-art review that presents recent research on BGI by identifying and critically evaluating published studies that considered urban heat island mitigation and stormwater management as potential benefits. Thirty-two records were included in the review, with the majority of studies published after 2015. Findings indicate that BGI effectively controls urban runoff and mitigates urban heat, with the literature being slightly more focused on stormwater management than urban heat island mitigation. Among BGI, the studies on blue- and blue-green roofs focused on one benefit at a time (i.e. thermal or hydrologic performance) and did not consider promoting multiple benefits simultaneously. Two-thirds of the selected studies were performed on a large urban scale, with computer modelling and sensor monitoring being the predominant assessment methods. Compared with typical Green Infrastructure (GI), and from a design perspective, many crucial questions on BGI performance, particularly on smaller urban scales, remain unanswered. Future research will have to continue to explore the performance of BGI, considering the identified gaps.

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“…Across the world, human‐induced climate change and extreme precipitation episodes have led to extensive stormwater problems and material damage in densely built urban areas (Bohman et al, 2020; Deely et al, 2020; Jiang et al, 2017; Kessler, 2011; Liu et al, 2019; Lund, 2018; O'Donnell et al, 2017). When conventional underground drainage systems are unable to handle stormwater, the response is to increasingly plan for blue–green infrastructure (BGI) to manage stormwater problems above ground (Alves et al, 2019; Brears, 2018; Dhakal & Chevalier, 2016; Flores et al, 2021; Ghofrani et al, 2020; Travaline et al, 2015; Wihlborg et al, 2019). BGI comprises interconnected natural elements such as rivers, streams, canals, ponds, wetlands, water reservoirs and designed landscape elements such as rain gardens, bioswales and green roofs (Liao, 2019; Oral et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…BGI comprises interconnected natural elements such as rivers, streams, canals, ponds, wetlands, water reservoirs and designed landscape elements such as rain gardens, bioswales and green roofs (Liao, 2019; Oral et al, 2020). Such nature‐based BGI implementation is currently regarded as vital under the EU strategy on climate change adaptation (Flores et al, 2021). Despite this increased focus on nature as a functional component of urban infrastructure, the implementation of nature‐based solutions such as BGI is by no means mainstream (Matsler, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Co‐benefits and conflicts in alternative stormwater planning: Blue versus green infrastructure?

Kvamsås

2022

Env Pol Gov

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Blue-green infrastructure (BGI) is often promoted for its co-benefits and multifunctionality. However, this infrastructure is repeatedly planned, implemented and researched almost entirely based on the goals of stormwater management. Thus, more knowledge is required about how co-benefits are perceived and actioned by planning actors. By investigating co-benefits from a value perspective, this paper will contribute to the ongoing debate on how stormwater planning actors address the potential co-benefits and conflicts in the planning and implementation of BGI. The data are derived from policy document analyses and interviews with municipal and private planning actors in Bergen and Tromsø, Norway. The paper argues that municipal water actors are motivated to implement BGI beyond stormwater management goals and approach co-benefits and holistic stormwater management as an ideal in stormwater planning. However, the tensions and conflicts between the co-benefits become more evident in the actual implementation of BGI. The paper finds that when holistic BGI implementation is initiated by the municipal water actors, the stormwater management aspects dominate the BGI implementation. Finally, the paper concludes that even though blue and green values and interests are often conflicted in the implementation of BGI, urban stormwater planning is in the process of developing a blue-green value set based on the potential synergies of co-benefits. The paper therefore empirically illustrates how collective values and interests can develop and unfold across sectors and professional disciplines in BGI planning.

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Governance assessment of a blue-green infrastructure project in a small size city in Belgium. The potential of Herentals for a leapfrog to water sensitive

Cited by 15 publications

References 53 publications

Toward a contextualized research agenda: Governance challenges of the wastewater treatment policy in Mexico and the role of subnational governments

Toward a contextualized research agenda: Governance challenges of the wastewater treatment policy in Mexico and the role of subnational governments

The potential of Blue-Green infrastructure as a climate change adaptation strategy: a systematic literature review

Co‐benefits and conflicts in alternative stormwater planning: Blue versus green infrastructure?

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