URSULA has three ‘I’s – Developing Integrated and Innovative

Interventions for Urban River Corridors

David Lerner & Tom Wild

Acknowledgements

• Funding EPSRC

• Images Simon Ogden/SCC, Tom

Wild, Mott Macdonald, Stadt Dortmund

• Research team Tom Wild Abigail Hathaway Sarah Moore Peter Moug Ed Morgan Ed Shaw Mel Burton

• Partners Arup Corus Environment Agency H2OPE RCIS RTPI Scott Wilson Sheffield City Council SNIFFER South Yorkshire Forest Yorkshire Forward York. & Humber Regional

Environ. Forum Yorkshire Water

• And more, we hope

1848 1888Slide from Klement TOckner, EAWAGMohilla & Michlmayr (1996). Donauatlas – Wien vier Jahrhunderte Kartenbild

Taming rivers: the Danube at Vienna

1989

Where we were

Where we are

Is this the best we can do?

• Narrow corridor Access Recreation Ecological value Flooding Land value Economic contribution

We’ve turned round and stopped removing the trees

Sustainable design

• Maximises Environmental

• Biodiversity

• Pollutant processing

• Flood management

Social• Health and well being

• Community

• Landscape

Economic• Productivity

• Land values

• Flood damage

• values

Sustainable design

• Maximises Environmental

• Biodiversity

• Pollutant processing

• Flood management

Social• Health and well-being

• Community

• Landscape

Economic• Productivity

• Land values

• Flood damage

• values

What is URSULA?

• Urban River Corridors and Sustainable Living Agendas

• EPSRC* funded research project

• A consortium of researchers and stakeholders

• Support for the Waterways Strategy Group and partners

• £2.5M over 4 years from January 2008

• 310 man-months of researcher time

• An opportunity!

*EPSRC = Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council

URSULA Hypothesis

• There are significant social, economic and environmental gains to be made by integrated and innovative interventions in urban river corridors.

• Can the river improve the city,and the city improve the river,and both improve life for all?

URSULA aim & methodology

Recommendations

Assessment of interventions

Indicators

Interventions,innovations

New tools

Data & models

Stakeholders

Integrated and Innovative Interventions

• To be determined in alliance with stakeholders What is happening? What are they interested in testing What can we do? What novel ideas do we have?

• Some possibilities …

Sheffield’s Rivers

3 scales – 3 case studies

• Site (building) scale Vulcan House / Kelham Island Goyt

• Reach (street) scale Nursery Street

• Corridor (strategic planning) scale Upper & Lower Don valley regeneration corridors

1. Vulcan House (site) 2. Nursery Street

(reach)

3. Blue-green spaces (corridor)

Site scale – Vulcan House

Vulcan House (Home Office)

• Exceeds BREEAM ‘excellent’ rating Carbon neutral in use water use 20% < than government target

• BUT – how does building design make use of river setting?

The river as an asset

• Vulcan House could be anywhere …

• Some interventions to study: River as heat source or sink Flood-proofing Microhydro

• Once again harness Sheffield’s rivers?• Modern day water wheels?

Kelham Island Goyt

Reach scale – Nursery Street

Nursery St - June 2007

A vision of Nursery St

Multi-functional design of spaces

• Could Nursery Street provide: Flood storage capacity A high quality setting for investment An image changing ‘landmark’ An event space Improved local quality of life Reconnection to the core of the city?

Corridor scale

“The redevelopment of urban river corridors provides us with a once in a lifetime opportunity to recreate open space networks penetrating the heart of the city, and sustainable transport links joining communities with key economic centres” (TW)

Dortmund’s green radial plan

Sustainable design

• Maximises Environmental

• Biodiversity

• Pollutant processing

• Flood management

Social• Health and well-being

• Community

• Landscape

Economic• Productivity

• Land values

• Flood damage

• values

• What is the appropriate ratio of Blue : Green : Grey

• How do land values respond to more blue-green space?

• Can flood capacity be built in without losing other values?

• How do we negotiate these trade-offs?

New Hall - before & after

1975 1996

An opportunity

Minimum blue-green

Maximum blue-green

Compromise?Compromise?

Summary

• The opportunity of urban river corridors

• Sustainable design for social – environmental – economic values

• Investigate interventions at all scales

• Working with stakeholders d.n.lerner@shef.ac.uk or t.wild@shef.ac.uk

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