Nature-based solutions in the urban context - terminology, classification and scoring for urban challenges and ecosystem services

Castellar, Joana A. C (author), Atanasova, Nataša (author), Langergraber, Günter (author), Acuňa, Vicenç (author)

The concept of Nature-BasedSolutions (NBS)has emerged tofostersustainable development bytransversallyad-dressing social, economic, and environmental urban challenges. However, there is still a considerable lack ofagreement on the conceptualization of NBS, especially concerning typologies, nomenclature, and performanceassessments in terms of ecosystem services (ES) and urban challenges (UC). Therefore, this article consolidatesthe knowledge from 4 European projects to set a path for a common understanding of NBS and thus, facilitatetheir mainstreaming. To do so,firstly, we performed elicitation workshops to develop an integrative list ofNBS, based on the identification of overlaps among NBS from different projects. The terminologies were formal-ized via web-based surveys. Secondly, the NBS were clustered, following a conceptual hierarchical classification.Thirdly, we developed an integrative assessment of NBS performance (ES and UC) based on the qualitative eval-uations from each project. Afterwards, we run a PCA and calculated the evenness index to explore patternsamong NBS. The main conceptual advancement resides in providing a list of 32 NBS and putting forward twonovel NBS categories: NBS units (NBSu) that are stand-alone green technologies or green urban spaces, whichcan be combined with other solutions (nature-based or not); NBS interventions (NBSi) that refer to the act of in-tervening in existing ecosystems and in NBSu, by applying techniques to support natural processes. The statisticalanalysis suggests that NBSuare more versatile than NBSiin terms of UC and ES

• Language: English
• Work type: Scientific work
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: FGG - Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Submitted for review: 12.11.2020
• Article acceptance date: 26.02.2021
• Publication date: 05.03.2021
• Year: 2021
• Number of pages: Str. 1-13
• Numbering: Letn. 779/146237
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-127269
• UDC: 502/504:72
• ISSN on article: 0048-9697
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146237
• COBISS.SI-ID: 57949187
• Publication date in RUL: 01.06.2021

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Science of the total environment
• Shortened title: Sci. total environ.
• Publisher: Elsevier
• ISSN: 0048-9697
• COBISS.SI-ID: 26369024

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Project number: 776665
• Name: Integrating Edible City Solutions for social resilient and sustainably productive cities
• Acronym: EdiCitNet