Thinking about Environmental Design: a study on green spaces along the Lavapés River in Botucatu-SP

Abstract

In the search for environmental quality, it has been discussed so much about the importance of green spaces and their benefits. Several researches, last decades, have pointed out strategies of green infrastructure, in order to improving the cities, through a balance between human relations and the environment. However, it is observed that the application of these principles is still a challenge in front of the traditional methods of urban planning that rule the design decisions, even in those cities that point out by their environmental management. Thus, in this context, the present research has as objective to open the discussion about the Planning and Environmental Design in Botucatu, Centro-Oeste Paulista, through a study about the urban green spaces along the Lavapés River. For this, different materials and methods were adopted: bibliographic and documentary research, field study and cartography. The results lead to two main findings: first, that the studied area presents several possibilities for the treatment of their urban open spaces; and second, that researches of this nature should be deepened, in order to stimulating the implementation of green infrastructure in consolidated urban areas, mainly in small and medium-sized cities, in order to pointing out the importance of nature in the urban landscape.