What makes a successful Sponge City project? Expert perceptions of critical factors in integrated urban water management in the Asia-Pacific

Hawken, Scott; Sepasgozar, Samad M. E.; Prodanovic, Veljko; Jia, Jing; Bakelmun, Ashley; Avazpour, Behnaz; Che, Shengquan; Zhang, Kefeng

doi:10.1016/j.scs.2021.103317

Cited by 27 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 113 publications

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“…The lack of research on the application of UGI for the SDGs suggests that that research communities are not engaged with local, urban, or global agencies in advancing innovative green infrastructure solutions to serious pollution, climate, and resource problems. As Bhaduri et al [59] points out with specific reference to water services, the SDGs generally are measured at a national level, and local and urban assessments on water risk assessment is needed as global-scale assessments may overlook them, masking distinctive local water challenges [61] and risks particular to the urban context.…”

Section: The State Of Research On Urban Green Infrastructure and The ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, green infrastructure, which delivers ecosystem services is a significant multiplier that provides dividends for economies beyond the specific remit of particular urban-development projects. Water systems are particularly sensitive and reliant upon a healthy urban-green-infrastructure system [60,61]. However, Chung et al [62] suggest that little global research has examined the intricate relationships between built and natural infrastructure for providing freshwater ecosystem services to cities across the globe.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The SDGs, Ecosystem Services and Cities: A Network Analysis of Current Research Innovation for Implementing Urban Sustainability

et al. 2021

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Ecosystem services provide essential services for cities and are key factors in achieving many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Such services are best delivered through green infrastructure, which works in resourceful, multifunctional, synergistic, and environmentally sensitive ways to deliver ecosystem services and provide alternative cleaner pathways for the delivery of multiple urban services. It is unclear if current research supports the necessary linkages between ecosystem services, cities, and green infrastructure in order to achieve the SDGs. To answer this question, we conducted a systematic review analysing 3392 studies on the SDGs from the WoS database. The contents of 66 of those with relevance to ecosystem services and urban research were reviewed in depth. We applied network-analytic methods to map the relationships of different knowledge clusters of SDGs research (1) across time, (2) across disciplines, and (3) in relation to ecosystem services and cities. The results of our analysis show that research on the SDGs have developed stronger networks from 2010–2018, but this research has not been sustained. Further, whilst research on cities now occupies a central place in the SDGs literature, research on ecosystem services only shows tentative links to both green-infrastructure research and SDGs research. Such literature on urban green infrastructure remains peripheral to the central challenge of sustainable urban transitions. We conclude that when it comes to the SDGs, research articles typically consider urban services independently of green infrastructure. Further, it suggests that green infrastructure is not generally considered as a sustainable alternative to conventional urban infrastructures. To address this serious shortcoming, we recommend transdisciplinary approaches to link urban ecosystem and urban green infrastructure research to the 2030 global sustainability agenda.

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Section: The State Of Research On Urban Green Infrastructure and The ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The SDGs, Ecosystem Services and Cities: A Network Analysis of Current Research Innovation for Implementing Urban Sustainability

et al. 2021

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“…Consequently, non-human, or ecologically-centric (eco-centric) urban design often poorly incorporates plant and animal benefits. While some urban planning rules dictate immediate actions towards biodiversity promotion, these are usually not sustained over the project life-time and often become neglected when human-centric issues surface, as witnessed in most major infrastructure projects in the cities (Hawken et al, 2021). Additionally, researchers are arguing that we are missing a more profound understanding of how to enhance biodiversity in urban spaces, and, furthermore, how to incorporate this in explicit planning approaches (Ignatieva et al, 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Urban nature-based solutions planning for biodiversity outcomes: human, ecological, and artificial intelligence perspectives

Prodanovic,

Bach,

Stojkovic

2024

Urban Ecosyst

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Nature-based solutions (NBS) harness ecosystem services for urban enhancement, promoting biodiversity, habitat creation, and water management while improving human well-being. However, decision-making often favours specific NBS designs, leading to uneven benefits distribution. Whereas human-centric NBS design relies on convenience, financial sustainability, historical aspects, and amenity increase through NBS technical solutions, flora- and fauna-centric (or eco-centric) design targets spatial connectedness of blue-green spaces, increase in species richness, and habitat within urban centres. Both approaches can shape the urban biodiversity landscape, yet; they often clash around planning priorities. Recent advances in AI offer potential for AI-centric urban planning, though its role remains unclear. This study examines the interplay between biodiversity and NBS planning across human-, eco-, and AI-centric domains, aiming for balanced urban outcomes. We blended narrative, integrative, and systematic literature review and propose future steps for more balanced NBS development. The findings of this work suggest that AI presents an opportunity for a more balanced NBS design through its applications in climate change prediction, water management, and project visualisation. Incorporating AI into urban planning tools can expedite modelling process, improve stakeholder communication, and enhance project outcomes visualisation. By integrating human, eco, and AI-centric approaches, urban planners can foster resilience and sustainability in NBS implementation, ensuring equitable distribution of benefits across urban landscapes.

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“…In practice, this can be accomplished by medium-and small-scale elements that allow water storage (detention basins and rain tanks), infiltration (permeable pavements and infiltration wells) or both (public parks and rooftop/rain gardens) (Nguyen et al, 2019;Kumar et al, 2021). Since its introduction to the public in 2013, the Sponge City program has shown its feasibility for multiple real-world examples across China (Hawken et al, 2021;Yin et al, 2022), yet, especially its adaptability and possible small-scale implementation make it highly attractive to other rapidly growing megacities in Southeast Asia.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low-regret Climate Change Adaptation in Coastal Megacities – Evaluating Large-Scale Flood Protection and Small-Scale Rainwater Detention Measures for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Scheiber

David

Jalloul

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Abstract. The risk of urban flooding is a major challenge for many megacities in low elevation coastal zones (LECZ), especially in Southeast Asia. Here, the effects of environmental stressors overlap with rapid urbanization, which significantly aggravates the hazard potential in these regions. Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) in Southern Vietnam is a prime example of this set of problems and therefore a meaningful study case to apply the concept of low-regret disaster risk adaptation as defined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). In order to explore and evaluate potential options for hazard mitigation, a hydro-numerical model was employed to scrutinize the effectiveness of two adaptation strategies: (1) a large-scale flood protection scheme as currently constructed in HCMC and (2) the widespread installation of small-scale rainwater detention as envisioned in the framework of the Chinese Sponge City Program (SPM). A third adaptation scenario (3) assesses the combined implementation of both approaches (1) and (2). From a hydrological point of view, the reduction of various flood intensity proxies suggests that the effectiveness of large-scale flood protection outweighs that of small-scale rainwater storage by far. For example, an assessment of the Normalized Flood Severity Index (NFSI) suggests a potential flood reduction that is 3.5 times higher for a classic infrastructure solution than for the Sponge City approach. In contrast, the number of manufacturing firms that are protected from risk after the implementation of disaster risk adaptation significantly excels for the latter response option: while the ring dike mitigates flooding at about 20 % of all considered locations, the assumed rainwater detention would protect up to 93 %. And also, from a governance perspective, decentralized rainwater storage conforms better to the low-regret paradigm: while the large-scale ring dike depends on a binary commitment (to build or not to build), decentralized small- and micro-scale solutions can be implemented gradually (through targeted subsidies) and add technical redundancy to the overall system. In the end, both strategies are highly complementary in their spatial and temporal reduction of flood intensity, so local decision-makers may specifically seek multi-faceted strategies, avoiding singular approaches and designing adaptation pathways in order to successfully prepare for a deeply uncertain future.

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What makes a successful Sponge City project? Expert perceptions of critical factors in integrated urban water management in the Asia-Pacific

Cited by 27 publications

References 113 publications

The SDGs, Ecosystem Services and Cities: A Network Analysis of Current Research Innovation for Implementing Urban Sustainability

The SDGs, Ecosystem Services and Cities: A Network Analysis of Current Research Innovation for Implementing Urban Sustainability

Urban nature-based solutions planning for biodiversity outcomes: human, ecological, and artificial intelligence perspectives

Low-regret Climate Change Adaptation in Coastal Megacities – Evaluating Large-Scale Flood Protection and Small-Scale Rainwater Detention Measures for Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

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