Green and blue infrastructure in cities in the light of economics and residents' preferences

Sat, Jun 1, 2024, 11:16 AM · 23:51

The number of people living in cities has increased rapidly in the last decades due to a rapid population growth and, most importantly, increasing rates of urbanisation. The ongoing climate change brings along phenomena that may have an impact primarily on city inhabitants in the future, for example through water deficiency, (flash) floods, heat waves or drought. It is therefore necessary that cities react to these new conditions and use adaptive measures to help their inhabitants to adapt to climate change. We know how to do it, and we're excited to get started! Although Czech cities are considered relatively green in international comparison, we cannot rely on current measures. It is necessary to look for other places for greening such as green roofs and facades or blue infrastructure elements, which are lacking in Czech cities. The implementation of these measures is associated with a number of barriers (lack of funding and incentives, priorities directed to other public service areas, conflicts of interest, etc.). Awareness of both decision-makers and the general public plays an important role in this. The awareness and therefore the acceptance of the measures can be increased through appropriate communication. The results of economic assessment in the form of economic arguments play an important role in how to present green and blue infrastructure in an easily understandable form. To achieve these objectives, we can combine a number of methods, such as preference survey, cost- benefit analysis, ecosystem services assessment, etc. The application of these methods in relation to innovative examples of blue-green infrastructure elements and provided benefits will be the main focus of the presentation.