Trieste: “Urban Green Plan” for a cooler, more inclusive city

Last stages for the approval process of the first Urban Green Plan of the Municipality of Trento. The draft document will be the focus of two dedicated meetings in the coming weeks: on October 29 with the Districts, on October 31 with Professional Bodies and Orders. The goal is to reach the City Council at the beginning of December.

The journey started a year ago, with the collection and processing of data that photograph the various typologies of public greenery distinguished by District (the previous analysis dated back to the early 2000s). The analysis also included health status, accessibility, ecosystem services and whether there was a public green area within 5 and 10 minutes' walk of residential areas.

Created with the contribution of the Land Italia studio led by landscape architect Andreas Kipar, the Urban Green Plan involved the city community to ensure a holistic and collaborative approach to the protection and enhancement of the city's nature, considered a common good. Through adaptive planning, Green and blue infrastructure becomes a central pillar of a strategy aimed at countering and minimising the effects of climate change in a resilience perspective, thanks to the fundamental contribution of nature-based solutions.

The Plan has many areas of action and aims not only at protection of biodiversity, but also to the development of urban greenery, the reduction of architectural barriers and the increase in the inclusiveness of public gardens, the mitigation of the effects of climate change and heat islands in all public spaces.

Featured there is an increase in tree planting and care of urban green corridors and axes: the Green Plan proposes the extension of existing tree-lined rows along the main urban and peri-urban avenues to build a network of cooler paths, also with the insertion of strips of shrubs and flower beds as biodiversity corridors.

Among the strategic areas there is also the de-impermeabilization of urban areas, the introduction of drainage systems and the increase of green surfaces in existing and planned squares. The Plan also pays attention to private greenery by promoting the inclusion of green walls and roofs in existing and new buildings and the enhancement of privately owned gardens. Furthermore: the Plan recognises the value of the protection of agricultural areas of significant landscape interest through the creation of an agricultural park and the promotion of municipal urban gardens.

A significant action concerns the redevelopment of greenery along waterways and canals, first of all with the enhancement of public green areas along the Adige river to arrive at the creation of an urban river park. The urban torrent channels of the Rio Salè and the Fersina also need to be redeveloped to connect the valley floor with the hill.

The result of a comparison involving citizens (called to express themselves through a questionnaire) and thematic insights (for example on the accessibility and inclusiveness of green areas with the Tavolo Città di Trento for the inclusion of people with disabilities), The Urban Green Plan is the expression of the Municipal Administration's desire to organically and systematically intensify its commitment to the care and enrichment of biodiversity.

The document was also born in the context of Selina, a European project of which the Municipality of Trento is a partner and which aims to enhance ecosystem services and natural capital. Particular attention was paid to the wealth represented by the many projects and forms of citizen participation and communication activities on greenery.

The Plan is a strategic document to support planning and at the same time a tool for the management and development of green spaces within an urban area. Its purpose is to improve the quality of life of residents and to promote environmental sustainability through the integration and enhancement of the city's green spaces.

For this reason it is an integral part of the Plan the continuous monitoring of the proposed actions in addition to the planning of implementation plans for the interventions (the first will be related to interventions on heat islands and the inclusiveness of green areas).

The drafting of the Plan was supported by the Parks and Gardens office (Road and Parks Management Service), the Land Italia studio and the Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering of the University of Trento.