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4.3 Space for urban restoration

In urban areas, where available space is limited, river restoration projects are frequently restricted. However, there is potential to deliver improvements in physical condition, along with significant environmental and social benefits, by using innovative approaches. For example, in Munich, the flood corridor of the River Isar offered some space and thus could be integrated in the Isar restoration project.

Towns and cities are continually changing and it is this process of change which provides the opportunity for restoring river and lake environments. For example, there may be opportunities to remove redundant structures and buildings, and restore derelict land alongside rivers in order to improve local amenity and environment (Natural Scotland, 2015).

Because of the lack of space in urban areas, some cities have also been developing stepping-stone concepts for restoring the networks of their water bodies. On the one hand, restoration interventions are easier to plan and implement in the outskirts and peri-urban areas than in downtown districts. When it comes to restoration combined with flood risk management, this is even necessary as flood retention should be achieved before the flood reaches the city centre. On the other hand, restoration in the centre of large cities can be time-consuming, costly and technically difficult both in the planning and implementation process. To deal with such difficulties, the city of Vienna has adopted a stepping stone approach to restoring its urban water bodies. The activities have started in the outskirts of the city where the frame conditions are easier. For the more central urban stretches, which are very difficult to restore, master plans are developed in each case for the entire stretch, and implementation takes place in phases (starting with the River Liesing (2015-2021) and continuing with the River Wien in the next WFD planning period (2021-2021)).

The case studies reviewed for this report also show that urban restoration projects can be facilitated when the land in question is in public hands. In the city of Łódź, the investments for restoration are being implemented on land which belongs to the City or other public owners, which makes the implementation process more efficient. Similarly, in Leipzig, large parts of the project area for the restoration of the Luppe are already in public ownership, especially forest sites. Transformation of arable land into more floodplain-adapted land uses like grassland still remains a big challenge as compensation areas have to be found. In the case of the River Guadiana (Mérida), one of the goals of the restoration project was to increase the public domain areas on the river banks. Obtaining new areas close to the river to develop the restoration activities was necessary, and this was achieved by the means of expropriation (according to Spanish law).