Amazonian children’s experiences of nature-based recreation in an urban blue space

The availability of water surfaces in urban areas (urban blue space) has a positive effect on people’s health and well-being. To take this knowledge into account in planning processes, the urban blue space should be quantified. Urban blue space is defined as all visible and accessible water surfaces, with the intrinsic characteristic of being located in populated areas. To assess the visibility of urban blue spaces, individual buildings as well as parts of one building can be evaluated according to the relative visibility of the waters from these locations and vice versa. This report presents the evolution of a workflow to quantify the urban blue space. First, the workflow generates viewpoints on building surfaces by floor, based on a 3D city model. In the next step, a visibility analysis is performed and, finally, the visible urban blue space is quantified for each viewpoint. The quantification and its visualization are performed for both ends of the line of sight: the measure of visible urban blue spaces for each viewpoint is represented on the building facade and the visibility frequency from all viewpoints is evaluated for each part of urban blue space.

Chapter 12 - Urban blue spaces, health, and well-being

Urban blue spaces are highly valuable for both people and nature. They provide key ecosystem services, including flood alleviation, pollution absorption and microclimate regulation. They also support human health and wellbeing, through cultural services such as recreation and tourism, and the provision of food resources. Crucially, urban blue spaces support biodiversity, including threatened species, and despite often being small, may have disproportionate effects on their surrounding environment, acting as critical habitats within urban systems. However, research on the role of urban blue spaces within ecological contexts remains limited. Here, we assessed urban bird communities across green and blue spaces to quantify the ecological effects of urban water bodies. We surveyed birds along 22 paired 1 km transects in the city of Kingston Upon Hull, UK, recording species and abundance across both winter and breeding seasons. Our findings indicate that blue spaces significantly increase bird species richness during summer (P = .016), though not in winter. However, we found that the taxonomic distinctiveness of bird communities is consistently greater around blue spaces across both seasons (P < .05). Similarly, functional diversity based on species-level ecological traits was higher around water (P = .01). In addition, we show that urban blue spaces could be important for avian conservation, supporting more red and amber-listed species than green spaces during the summer (P < .05). Overall, our results show that urban blue spaces play a critical ecological role within cities by enhancing the complexity of avian communities, which in turn could improve human wellbeing and contribute to urban sustainability.

Urban blue spaces are defined as all natural and manmade surface water in urban environments. This paper draws on how the concepts of experienced, symbolic, social, and activity space combine to position urban blue spaces as therapeutic landscapes. We conducted 203 intercept interviews between 12 October 2019 and 10 November 2019. Although safety concerns had health-limiting impacts, interacting with the Glasgow Canal and surrounding landscape was predominantly perceived as health-enhancing. Our findings build on current evidence, which has suggested that urban blue spaces, particularly canals, may foster therapeutic properties, contributing to healthier city environments. Further research is required to understand better the interconnectedness of urban blue spaces and health and how such spaces can be best developed and managed to improve the health outcomes of local populations.

Current waterfront studies focus mainly on a land-based perspective, failing to include the water side. Water is, however, not just a resource for port and industrial purposes and an edge to the waterfront; it is also a feature of the waterfront and the complex relation between water and city. Thus, the article suggests that water-land edges need to be re-contextualised, taking into consideration also their shape, functionality, and evolution over time. This article therefore introduces the concept of urban blue spaces, that is, spaces that include at least one land-water edge, such as a shoreline or river edge. The types and character of these edges define the porosity of urban blue spaces: Spaces with easy connections, such as boulevards or parks, are highly porous, while fenced areas have low porosity. The research first analyses the existing literature on the spatial and functional characteristics of the land-water edge in port cities, and explores existing typologies of urban blue spaces. The results of this investigation are used to examine the most iconic urban blue space of Gdańsk, the Motława river, over the last 1000 years. The case study shows that the porosity of the Gdańsk urban blue space has been increasing over time, in line with its spatial and functional development from an undeveloped riverbank to a ‘gated’ port and industry area, to urban living spaces today. The article thus presents the whole breadth of urban blue spaces through the case study of the Motława river urban blue space. The spatial evolution of the urban blue space is depicted through the transformation of its land-water edge—from a natural sloping edge to the dominance of vertical edged structures or ones overhanging the surface of the water, to the emergence of spatially ‘blurred’ sloping, slanted, terraced, and floating structures, partially independent of the riverbank. The transformation of the structure of the Motława urban blue space edges increased its complexity over time, from a single-edge structure to a double and multiple-edged one.

Urban blue space is increasingly embraced by cities as a specific and valuable genre of public space, valued for its economic, symbolic and experiential place attributes and essential to sustainable urban development. This article takes up the concept of urban blue space from a design perspective, extending and exploring it through a critical social science lens. Using the reconfiguration and redesign of the central Seattle waterfront as a case example, the idea of “doing justice” is enlisted to examine not just the design opportunities and formal characteristics of the site, but also the patterns of privilege, access and regional socio-ecological equity that are raised through its redesign. After situating the extraordinary design opportunity presented by this iconic urban blue space, and the imperative to do justice to the waterfront’s physical situation, the article presents the site from four additional and discrete perspectives: economic justice, environmental justice, social justice and tribal justice. By thus foregrounding the urban political ecology of the waterfront, the article demonstrates that the most important challenge of the site’s redevelopment is not technological, financial or administrative, although these are real, and significant challenges, but rather, the need to construct a place that works to counter established patterns of local and regional injustice. In Seattle as in other coastal port cities, urban blue space is a shared public and environmental good, with unique and demanding governance responsibilities for its conceptualization and sustainable development.

Evaluating the role of formal urban blue spaces in ecosystem service provision: Insights from New Town, Kolkata.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The COVID-19 pandemic has posed challenges for people worldwide experiencing restrictions and social isolation. The present study focuses on the exploration of the health benefits from visits to urban green (UGS) and urban blue spaces (UBS) during the third wave of COVID-19, as well as practices and perceptions towards urban nature in pre- and post-lockdown Greece. METHODS: In February 2021 we conducted an online survey among 925 participants (18-65 years old, 30% male) on the engagement with UGS and UBS (proximity, ease of access, frequency, duration, motivation and types of UGS/UBS visited, as well as view of UGS and UBS from home) pre- and post-lockdown. Anxiety and depression were measured with the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) and subjective questions were used to determine the value participants attach to urban nature. RESULTS:Lockdown measures resulted in a reduction of visitation and availability of different types of UGS and UBS, while the time spent in nature was either unchanged or slightly increased. The main motivation for using urban nature was walking and relaxing both pre- and post-lockdown. Participants' wellbeing was negatively affected during lockdown; however, access and view of UGS and/or UBS were perceived as helpful for coping with negative emotions, while visitation was associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety. The presence of UGS and/or UBS within the urban fabric was perceived as highly important by 89% of participants, who attached a higher value to urban nature after having experienced social isolation at home. Finally, a clear preference for continuing visiting UGS and UBS after the lifting of the lockdown was observed. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings show the positive association between UGS and/or UBS exposure and mental health improvement in times of social isolation, highlighting the need to integrate ecosystem services into urban design. KEYWORDS: built environment, green space, blue space, COVID-19, mental health outcomes

Urban blue spaces are highly valuable for both people and nature, providing key ecosystem services, including flood alleviation, pollution absorption, microclimate regulation, benefits to human health and wellbeing, and habitat provision. Crucially, urban blue spaces support biodiversity, including threatened species, and despite often being small, may have disproportionate effects on their surrounding environment, acting as critical habitats within urban systems. However, research on the role of urban blue spaces within ecological contexts remains limited. Here, we assessed urban bird communities across green and blue spaces to quantify the ecological effects of urban water bodies. We surveyed birds along 22 paired 1 km transects in the city of Kingston Upon Hull, UK, recording species and abundance across both winter and breeding seasons. Our findings indicate that blue spaces significantly increase bird species richness during summer (P= 0.016), though not in winter. However, we found that the taxonomic distinctiveness of bird communities is consistently greater around blue spaces across both seasons (P< 0.05). Similarly, functional diversity based on species-level ecological traits was more varied around water (P= 0.01). In addition, we show that urban blue spaces could be important for avian conservation, supporting more red and amber-listed species than green spaces during the summer (P= < 0.05). Overall, our results show that urban blue spaces play a critical ecological role within cities by enhancing the complexity of avian communities, which in turn could improve human wellbeing and contribute to urban sustainability.

The complexity of interface zones—determined by level of access to water and edge porosity—defines the extent of urban land-water integration. This study investigates the spatial and functional connection between urban land and water in public open spaces of Davao City, Philippines. Specifically, it explored the features of urban blue spaces across designated-use (9 stations), formal-use (4 stations), and informal-use (14 stations) typologies in the downtown Davao City seafront. A descriptive-exploratory approach integrating the spatial analysis with qualitative fieldwork was utilized to map the water's edge profile and quantitatively assess porosity levels by developing an index using factors such as land-water connection (C), land-water edge section (E), urban blue space use (U), and urban blue space edge (BSE). Findings revealed high porosity scores throughout most urban blue space sections, driven by complex water edges, direct waterline connections, and permeable designs that facilitate land-water connectivity and human interactions. The analysis revealed critical insights into urban blue space dynamics across edge types, using edge porosity and water accessibility as primary measures of land water relationships. Important physical features that contribute to high porosity were identified, emphasizing the role of unrestricted access to water. These features vary by spatial typology and involve trade-offs among water edge design, functionality, and regulatory control. While enhancing land-water connectivity, these attributes present management challenges inherent to waterfront public open spaces. The findings underscore the necessity of context-sensitive planning approaches that balance porosity, security, equity, and ecology to enhance recreational, aesthetic, and resilient waterfronts, aligning with studies on blue-green integration.

With rapid urban development in Beijing, there is a critical need to explore urban natural resources and understand their underlying mechanisms. Urban blue space (UBS) has gained increasing attention due to its potential to drive microcirculation, mitigate heat islands, and enhance residents’ well-being. In this study, we used remote sensing data to extract UBS in Beijing and employed exploratory spatial data analysis (ESDA) methods to examine its spatial and temporal development over the past two decades. We adopted a mesoscopic perspective to uncover the full spectrum of landscape patterns and quantitatively simulate the mechanisms influencing the area of UBS and landscape patterns. Our findings are as follows: (1) The UBS area in Beijing exhibited fluctuating growth from 2000 to 2020. (2) Spatial clustering of UBS was stable with subtle changes. (3) The ecological conditions in Beijing improved over the last 21 years, indicated by increased habitat diversity and richness, while notable landscape fragmentation posed significant challenges. (4) Science and technology management-related factors, such as UEM, EDUI, and STI, emerged as the most influential mechanisms for the UBS area. The coefficients for these factors were 0.798, 0.759, and 0.758, respectively. Following closely were vegetation conditions (NDVI) with a coefficient of 0.697 and an annual average temperature (T) with a coefficient of 0.692. (5) Precipitation was identified as the most vital influencing factor for the UBS landscape, with a significant correlation coefficient of 0.732. It was followed by residential population (POP), with a coefficient of 0.692, and economic conditions represented by gross domestic product (GDP), with a coefficient of 0.691.

Anthropogenic impacts on urban blue space and its reciprocal effect on human and socio-ecological health

Urban blue spaces, such as lakes and rivers, are increasingly recognized for their ecological and social roles, yet their contributions to sustainable food systems remain understudied. Here we examine the extent and benefits of foraging in urban blue spaces across four major Indian cities through a survey of 1,200 users. We identify three forager groups, that is, ‘rare’, ‘occasional’ and ‘frequent’ foragers, whose behaviors differ in frequency and practice. Women, the elderly and marginalized communities most frequently collect, share, cook and sell edibles. Access to home or community gardens strongly motivates occasional foragers. Frequent foragers emphasize benefits relating to nutrition and income, as well as culture and social capital, whereas occasional foragers appreciate nature- and culture-related benefits. Our findings challenge conventional perspectives on urban food provisioning, highlighting urban blue spaces as vital yet overlooked spaces for food access and resilience. Integrating foraging into urban planning can enhance equitable food systems, fostering transformative change toward sustainable urban landscapes.

Urban Blue Spaces (UBS) have been found to be beneficial to people’s mental health. Yet, the empirical evidence for how and why different types of urban blue spaces could promote residents’ mental health is still limited. Accordingly, 164 observation samples were collected for this experiment relating to the restorative perception of environmental exposure. The effects of two exposure behaviors (15 min of viewing and 15 min of walking) on psychological recovery in three different urban blue spaces settings (Urban River, Urban Canal, Urban Lake) were investigated in a field experiment. These are the main findings of this current study: (1) all three UBSs increased vitality, feelings of restoration, and positive emotions, and decreased negative emotions; (2) the mental restoration effects between walking and viewing among the three UBSs showed no significant differences; (3) of the three UBSs, urban rivers and urban lakes were the most restorative, while urban canals were less so; (4) the concept of “natural health dose” is proposed, where the health experiences of different UBSs in urban settings can show differences depending on the natural components and their levels of the environment (blue, blue + green, blue + blue). The results of this experiment can provide fundamental evidence that can contribute to building healthy cities through the management and design of different blue spaces.

Effects of perceived physical and aesthetic quality of urban blue spaces on user preferences–A case study of three urban blue spaces in Japan