Abstract
Urban flooding has become a serious issue in most Chinese cities due to rapid urbanization and extreme weather, as evidenced by severe events in Beijing (2012), Ningbo (2013), Guangzhou (2015), Wuhan (2016), Shenzhen (2019), and Chongqing (2020). The Chinese “Sponge City Program” (SCP), initiated in 2013 and adopted by 30 pilot cities, is developing solutions to manage urban flood risk, purify stormwater, and provide water storage opportunities for future usage. Emerging challenges to the continued implementation of Sponge Cities include (1) uncertainty regarding future hydrological conditions related to climate change projections, which complicates urban planning and designing infrastructure that will be fit for purpose over its intended operating life, and (2) the competing priorities of stakeholders and their reluctance to make trade-offs, which obstruct future investment in the SCP. Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) is an umbrella concept that emerged from Europe, which encourages the holistic idea of considering wider options that combine “Blue–Green” practices with traditional engineering to deliver “integrated systems of Blue–Green–Grey infrastructure”. NBS includes interventions making use of natural processes and ecosystem services for functional purposes, and this could help to improve current pilot SCP practices. This manuscript reviews the development of the SCP, focusing on its construction and design aspects, and discusses how approaches using NBS could be included in the SCP to tackle not only urban water challenges but also a wide range of social and environmental challenges, including human health, pollution (via nutrients, metals, sediments, plastics, etc.), flood risk, and biodiversity.
Highlights
Urban water management issues, such as water scarcity, surface water flooding, and freshwater pollution, are occurring more frequently worldwide [1]
Recognizing that climate change is increasing the probability of heavy frontal storms and typhoons, if the Sponge City Program” (SCP) is to be effective in reducing urban flood risk and increasing urban flood resilience in these cities, it will be necessary to integrate SCP measures with existing and enhanced engineered assets so that they act synergistically to raise flood protection standards in vulnerable urban areas generally, and especially in older districts that lack spaces for large-scale blue–green infrastructure
The authorities responsible for delivering the SCP are well aware of practices abroad with respect to BMP, LID, SuDs, WSUD, Low Impact Urban Design and Development” (LIUDD), Blue–Green Infrastructure” (BGI), Blue–Green City” (BGC), and, most recently, Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) [4]
Summary
Urban water management issues, such as water scarcity, surface water flooding, and freshwater pollution, are occurring more frequently worldwide [1]. NBS are defined as interventions inspired and supported by nature, which are cost-effective while delivering a range of environmental, social, and economic benefits [3,4] These solutions can address multiple urban challenges related to environmental dimensions including climate change adaptation and water management and economic and social dimensions such as green economics, human well-being, social equity, and public health [5,6]. Since the standards of living in China have improved, citizens are seeking better quality and safer urban environments This has shifted current urban water management in Chinese cities in greener and sustainable directions [10]. We examine recent progress in implementing NBS to explore how that concept may further improve the SCP in China with respect to tackling challenges relating to current urban issues (Section 5). Lessons learned from other global cities could help improve the implementation of SCP
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