Green infrastructure: Building sustainability and resilience in urban landscapes

Abstract

Cities are open ecosystems frequently vulnerable to climatic events. Urban sprawl based on private cars requires grey infrastructure development (roads, parking lots, and others impervious surfaces), which leads to recurrent impacts, such as floods and landslides, traffic congestion, high energy consumption, greenhouse gases emissions (GHG) and wide spread pollution. This paper focuses on the potential of green infrastructure as a means to mitigate the urbanization impacts,build resilience in urban ecosystems to face climate change challenges, besides preparing for a low carbon economy. Green infrastructure in a consolidated urban environment consists of a multifunctional green-blue (vegetated-hydric/drainage system) network which incorporates the retrofit and adaptation of existing grey infrastructure. Initially presents a brief ecological structure history, followed by a discussion about green infrastructure. Two case studies illustrate the green infrastructure potential: a consolidated one in Freiburg, Germany, and an ideal proposition for an urban watershed in Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil. Green infrastructure provides essential ecosystem services for long term urban sustainability. Planning, designing and managing green infrastructure may be a means to reduce floods and landslides, increase clean transportation, carbon sequestration, water quality and improve human health, with consequent economic benefits.