Stormwater reduction and flood control: Topos 68 presents projects and plans for river systems and coastal areas in Asia, Europe and America.
Sponge Park, New York City
Landscape architects: dlandstudio llc, Brooklyn, New York City A flexible stormwater management project in Brooklyn seeks to clean up a waterway and improve public access. Author: Drake, Susannah C. , Kim, Yong K.
Los Angeles River Revitalization Master Plan
Landscape architects: Civitas Inc.; Mia Lehrer + Associates; Wenk Associates Inc. The proposed master plan for the Los Angeles River will not only restore the ecology of the river but also the river’s identity. Greenways and parks will reconnect the river to the city. Significant government and community commit Author: Moutaud, Isabelle
New Orleans Since Katrina
Historically, the United States has relied on evacuation as a survival strategy during major coastal storm events. After the devastating hurricane, New Orleans concentrates on three approaches, thus producing fundamental contradictions. Author: Hill, Kristina
Reconstructing the Fez River, Morocco
Landscape architects: Bureau E.A.S.T. Over centuries a flourishing leather tanning industry degraded the water quality of the Fez River. Now, a masterplan should help to clean the river and create attractive urban spaces within the Medina. Author: Chaouni, Aziza, Tajima, Takako
Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project
Urban Design: HCP Design and Project Management The Indian city of Ahmedabad is rethinking its riverfront at a scale unheard of in India. Though implementation will be challenging, the city hopes that this integrated environmental improvement project will be a model for the nation. Author: Fenk, Anne-Katrin , Scheffer, Karsten
New Water Culture for Tianjin, China
Landscape architects: Atelier Dreiseitl The emerging city of Tianjin in the Chinese Hai River Basin faces problems of water shortages, frequent drought, floods and waterlogging. Sustainable water design is the focus of two new urban neighbourhoods. Author: Grau, Dieter
Sustainable Development in Flood-risk Environments
A United Kingdom study (LifE project) designs three conceptual developments that mitigate flood risk, generate their own energy, and provide high quality amenities. Author: Barker, Robert, Coutts, Richard
Netherlands: Room for the River
The Dutch “Room for the River” programme is facing the challenge of climate change with 39 projects that integrate design aspects and safety in preparation for rising water levels. Author: Sijmons, Dirk
Netherlands: Designing a Safe and Sustainable Rijn-Maas-Schelde Delta
A new master plan for a complex estuarine system in the southwest of the Netherlands seeks to reverse damage done by decades of human dominance. Author: Adriaanse, Leo, Hoekstra, Jandirk
A De-poldering Project in Beveren North, Belgium
The de-poldering of an area at the border of Belgium and the Netherlands will reconstitute natural and settled landscapes as well as their interplay, with a new relation of dykes, water qualities and levels, and hamlet structures. Author: De Meulder, Bruno, Shannon, Kelly
Coastal Adaptations: Protection strategies for the Dutch-German Wadden Sea
Since June 2009 the Dutch-German Wadden Sea is on the list of the Unesco World Heritage Sites. An accelerating sea level rise calls for a plan to merge coastal protection with nature protection in a way that stimulates a sustainable coastal economy. Author: Reise , Karsten
Designing Tidal Landscapes
Strategies for urban deltaic environments are a challenge for landscape architects. The example of the tidal Elbe landscape in the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, Germany, highlights how the strategic adoption of the dynamics of hydrology and topography can act as the major structuring foundation of urban form. Author: von Seggern, Hille, Stokman, Antje, Rabe, Sabine
Managing Water for the City of the Future
The research project “Sustainable Water Management Improves Tomorrow’s Cities Health, SWITCH” aims to promote a more sustainable urban water management. Demonstrating research and sharing knowledge across a range of different geographical, climatic, and sociocultural settings will help to catalyze change. Author: Vairavamoorthy, Kala
