Liverpool City Council was awarded €3.4m over a 6-year period for a pioneering research and innovation-led project to demonstrate the impact of investment into retrofitting nature-based solutions within an urban environment. Urban Green-Up is an EU-funded initiative which set the challenge to develop, apply and validate a methodology for re-naturing urban spaces to mitigate the effects of climate change, improve air quality and water management, and increase sustainability.
Solution
WSP have been involved in the feasibility, design, and installation, identifying and developing a range of nature-based solutions to link strategic sites and increase biodiversity along corridors within the city. Interventions include green walls, floating ecosystems, sustainable drainage, tree planting and pollinator verges. A key aspect of the project was to monitor the multiple benefits of each intervention and the data analysation has shown significant environmental, economic and social impacts.
Results
Improved air and water quality
Reduced carbon emissions
Enhanced biodiversity
Improved mental/physical wellbeing
Improved accessibility for green corridor routes
Reduced surface water flood risk
Lower air temperatures and thermoregulation