GUIDELINES FOR THE SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT

OF VENICE

COMUNE DI VENEZIA

INDEX

INTRODUCTION

The Liveable Cities programme

Liveability and Sustainability

Urban sustainability and European Community

Sustainability and Venice

A further impetus: “Venice Guidelines for Sustainable Urban Development”

VENICE GUIDELINES FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT

The supra-municipal dimension

Adoption of a long-term strategy

Re-definition of the citizenship concept

Participation and partnership

Towards a new model of economic development

Improvement of environmental quality

Safeguard of natural resources and the lagoon

Green areas

Water management

Waste management

Air quality protection

Reduction of acoustic, light and electromagnetic pollution

Improvement of performance in the energy field

Fair access to social and welfare services

Sustainable mobility and urban accessibility

Sustainable renewal of built environment

INTRODUCTION

The Liveable Cities programme

The Liveable Cities programme is co-financed by the European Commission within the

“Community framework for co-operation to promote sustainable urban development”. It brings

together cities and research partners that have a wealth of experience in sustainability issues and

are willing to exchange knowledge and better integrate environmental themes into all public

policies.

The primary objective of the project is to encourage and sustain cities in their efforts to improve the

quality of life in urban areas while developing sustainable urban management plans. This objective

is achieved through:

- the development of a set of guidelines – a Model Plan – grounded on practical and

challenging situations

- the organization of thematic workshops where experiences are shared and co-

operation among cities is strengthened.1

Liveability and Sustainability

The programme proposes a glossary addressed to the participants aimed at clarifying the issues

under discussion. According to the Liveable Cities programme:

LIVEABILITY is a highly integrated concept and includes economic, social and spatial elements, as

well as environmental aspects. Liveability explicitly relates to the specific local effects of human

activity people experience on a daily basis. It also usually refers to a perceptive dimension in that it

is influenced by the experiences and feelings people have in certain circumstances. For this

reason, liveability calls for the involvement of people in deciding what it actually means in different

situations. It also relates to the ‘quality of life’ concept. Liveable areas provide ample opportunity to

experience a good quality of life, while less liveable areas make this ambition harder to achieve. In

this, liveability can be considered as the framework of conditions necessary for people to have a

good quality of life. Moreover, the liveability concept provides us with ample opportunity to relate

the environment – the starting point of our project – to other aspects of urban governance.

Therefore, it perfectly fits with the Liveable Cities programme.2

The essence of the SUSTAINABILITY concept is to add a temporal dimension to the liveability

concept.

It typically refers to the importance to strike a balance between economic, social and

environmental aspects. In this framework, sustainability is often used to highlight the spatial

distribution of some processes. Local, regional and national processes often affect on another. The

1 www.liveablecities.org2 Liveable cities glossary

focal point of our programme is to make and keep cities attractive and healthy places to live in.

Therefore, although urban processes can produce large scale effects, we will focus on the

contribution they can give in keeping our cities attractive and healthy.3

Urban sustainability and European Community

On 11th February 2006, the final version of the “Communication of the Commission to the Council

and the European Parliament on Thematic Strategy on the Urban Environment” was released.

This means that the E.U. acknowledges that urban areas play an important role in delivering the

objectives of the European Union for Sustainable Development Strategy. In urban areas, in fact,

the environmental, economic and social dimensions meet most strongly. Precisely in cities

numerous environmental problems concentrate. However cities are also the economic drivers, the

centre of business and investments.4

The measures offered by this Strategy aim to contribute to a better implementation of existing

community environment legislation and policies at the local level, by supporting and encouraging

local authorities to adopt a more integrated approach to urban management.5

Sustainability and Venice

Venice has expressed its will to be a sustainable city by signing up to the “Aalborg commitments”6,

which aim at supporting the current local efforts for sustainability.7

The most relevant step towards sustainability in Venice, was the creation and approval of the

Venice Strategic Plan8, on 16th January 2006.

The Plan represents the city’s greatest effort ever made to implement a more integrated approach

to urban management and to address the future social, economic and physical development of the

Venice Municipality. It includes both public and private initiatives.

The 2004-2014 Venice Strategic Plan is composed of three “Structural Conditions” that are the

basis for seven “Strategic Lines”. The “Structural Conditions” are the following:

1) City of inhabitants: plural, incisive and sustainable,

2) Physical and functional structure of the contemporary city,

3) Metropolitan city.

The “Strategic lines” are the following:

1) International city;

2) City of culture;

3 Liveable cities glossary4 Communication of the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on Thematic Strategy on Urban Environment5 Communication of the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on Thematic Strategy on Urban Environment 6 www.aalborgplus10.dk7 Introduction of Aalborg commitments8 www.comune.venezia.it/pianostrategico/

3) City of waters;

4) City of tourism;

5) City of higher education, research and innovation;

6) City of top logistics;

7) City of material production and services.

Since its drafting phase, the Strategic Plan regarded sustainability as a fundamental issue for

political choices.

The general objective of the Venice Strategic Plan is to create – in a near and assessable future –

a city characterized by the high quality of life of its inhabitants, with regards to personal relations,

the working and cultural dimensions, as well as by the high quality of its physical and

environmental structures.9

It has to be highlighted that the Strategic Plan follows the direction proposed by the

“Communication of the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament on Thematic

Strategy on the Urban Environment” that suggests a more integrated approach to urban

management. The Plan is grounded on an overall review of the Municipality’s main plans and

initiatives and was outlined with the participation of 200 stakeholders. The Strategic Plan,

therefore, provides an integrated approach between existing and new policies.

The following is a list of implemented, approved or planned Initiatives and Plans that have played

an important role in the construction of the integrated approach embodied by the Strategic Plan.

Such a process reveals the efforts towards sustainability made by Venice in the past few years.

■ LA21

The main issues of the Venice Local Agenda 21 are the following:1. Sustainable tourism;2. Urban quality;3. Environment and production.

■ SMART Plan 200710

Fourteen objectives to improve urban sustainability on the short term:

1. The Social Environmental Report

2. Agreement Protocols with the private sector in the field of energy consumption and lifestyle

changes

3. Involvement of local community in the decision-making processes

4. Integrated structure for performance assessment with reference to sustainability

5. Analysis of connections between air quality and health

6. Emas registration

7. Awareness raising on the saving and conservation of water resources

9 Venice Strategic Plan, Counselor’s introductory speech10http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/strumenti_gestione_ambientale/Piano%20d%27Azione%20SMART.pdf

8. Increase separated waste collection in city centre

9. Reduce consumption and reorient lifestyles

10. The Strategic Plan: a coherent document with a strategic vision

11. Study on energy consumption in local administration’s public buildings

12. Reduce the city’s impact on global warming

13. Mainland mobility

14. Tourists’ environmental education

■ Energy Plan11

A national law prescribes an Energy Plan for the municipalities with over 50,000 citizens. Its aim is

to develop an energy system where renewable energy sources and energy saving are priority

instruments addressed to an improved environment safeguard. The Plan also includes 25 “action

cards" describing initiatives to undertake in order to achieve this goal.

■ Municipality Action Plan to improve air quality12

It considers the main polluting sources – such as industrial areas, car traffic, energy production –

and air quality, with a particular focus on those polluting agents currently causing great concern,

such as PM10 and Nox.The detailed analysis, carried out at district level, is the starting point of this

part of the project. It outlines:

- 6 emergency measures for crisis situations;

- 32 structural measures aimed at making emergency measures less frequent in the years to

come. Examples are mobility reorganization, energy saving, reduction of polluting emissions.

■ “Risk of relevant accident” plan

The “risk of relevant accident” plan classifies a part of the municipality territory into “risk areas”

labelled with the Greek letters from “” to “” according to their distance from dangerous industrial

plants. The letter “” indicates the maximum risk level. The Plan also establishes the purpose of

use allowed in each area.

■ Noise classification plan13

The entire territory of the municipality is classified into “noise areas”, ranging from “Class I” to

“Class VI”. “Class I” corresponds to most protected areas, while “Class VI” corresponds to the

areas where highest noise levels are allowed.

11 http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/energia.asp?sub=progetti&prog=pechttp://www.ambiente.venezia.it/energia.asp?sub=progetti&prog=pec0412 http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/aria/PianoAria_PartePrima_1.pdfhttp://www.ambiente.venezia.it/aria/PianoAria_PartePrima_2.pdf http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/aria/PianoAria_PartePrima_3.pdfhttp://www.ambiente.venezia.it/aria/PianoAria_ParteSeconda.pdf13 http://172.24.10.118/website/rumore/viewer.htm

■Master Plan to reclaim Porto Marghera’s polluted areas14

Porto Marghera is among the largest Italian industrial sites (2,200 hectares). The area hosts

industrial plants (first and second industrial area), canals and water basins, the commercial port,

roads, railways, services and buffer zones.

The Master Plan coordinates the soil decontamination measures.

■Municipality Regulation for installation and operation of mobile telephone base stations.15

The Municipality Regulation for Installation and operation of mobile phone base stations aims to

protect the citizens from electromagnetic pollution. Moreover, consistently with what established by

the regulation, the “Municipality Plan on installation of mobile phones base stations” is soon to be

approved.

■MASTER PLAN – AATO – Venice Lagoon16

In compliance with the Italian legislation, the management of water supply and wastewater

disposal is entrusted to the AATO, the Authority of Optimal Territorial Ambit. The plan contains the

safeguard programme and the planning of use and distribution of water resources to the current

and future generations.

■The parks of Mestre17

The San Giuliano and Bissuola Parks occupy a total surface of 733 hectares that includes

woodlands, meadows, paved surfaces, canals, sandbanks and lagoon. Their integrated

management is entrusted to a local body, Istituzione Parchi di Mestre, responsible for the

maintenance of natural areas, recreational, sports and business activities. The management

objective is to connect, at physical and structural level, the urban and territorial functions of those

areas.

■The Mestre’s Wood18

The initiative to create a wood in the northern mainland area – covering a total surface of 1,400

hectares - dates back to the '80s and develops thanks to the commitment of various environmental

movements and the citizenship. The technical rules of the General Town Plan for the construction

of this large wood around the city include environmental rules and rules awarding urban incentives

14 http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/suolo.asp?sub=progetti&type=masterplan (a short summary)15 http://www.comune.venezia.it/elettrosmog/Regolamento%20Antenne%20finale%2030.01.06.pdf16 http://www.atolagunadivenezia.it/pdf/Piano_d_Ambito_approvato.pdfhttp://www.atolagunadivenezia.it/PdA_cartografia.htm17 http://www.parchidimestre.it/18 http://www.comune.venezia.it/boscodimestre/

to those citizens who join the project. The Mestre’s Wood is promoted and managed by an ad hoc

Institute.

■General Urban Traffic Plan of Mestre and Marghera19

The General Urban Traffic Plan of Mestre and Marghera contemplates a review of regular

congestion spots, the classification of roads, the definition of pedestrian areas, restricted access

zones, cycling lanes and bus lanes, as well as the reorganization of parking areas and tariffs

policies.

■ General Town Plan20

The General Town Plan - which in compliance with the Regional Law 11/2004 is soon to be

replaced with the Spatial Planning Scheme (PAT) and the Interventions Plans (PI) - disciplines the

entire territory of the Municipality from the territorial development perspective.

Among other things, it establishes an increase of green areas in the mainland. The San Giuliano

Park and the Mestre’s Wood are two examples.

Moreover, the part dedicated to the Lagoon establishes the naturalistic restoration of some minor

islands and regulates the use of waters of the lagoon.

A further impetus: “Venice Guidelines for Sustainable Urban Development ”

The numerous ongoing plans and initiatives contributing to Venice sustainability together

with the great effort to deliver a more integrated approach to urban management as laid

out by the Strategic Plan, were examined above.

Our effort aims at combining the principles of the above mentioned plans and create a further

incentive through the drafting of the “Venice guidelines for sustainable urban development”. The

drafting of all future thematic and sector plans of the city will be inspired by these guidelines. The

latter, in turn, will be our Sustainable Urban Management Plan.

19 http://www.comune.venezia.it/put/2003/scarica.asp20 http://www.comune.venezia.it/urbanistica/

VENICE GUIDELINES FOR SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEVELOPMENT

The supra-municipal dimension

The principles of Sustainable Development need an implementational context that rarely matches

the one marked by traditional administrative boundaries. Hence, the Municipality is not the optimal

dimension from which to tackle all problems.

Problem

The city of Venice is located in a physical and spatial context whose characteristics call for a new

approach to problems solution, aimed at finding and implementing sound solutions over the long

term. The lagoon, the historical centre, the islands and mainland are the various interconnected

elements of a single integrated system. These parts are also very strongly linked - at social,

economic and environmental level - with the surrounding areas, not belonging to the complex

system.

Guiding Venice towards a sustainable urban development process, implies tackling new issues

and problems that involve not only the surrounding municipalities, but also the Province of Venice

as well as the Veneto Region. This means that the traditional municipality administrative

boundaries are obsolete and can no longer define the adequate frame within which to implement

the principles of Sustainable Development.21

Solution

Because of its role, Venice produces actions with wide territorial consequences. The city should

therefore consider this aspect and play a pivotal role in the coordination of the entire area’s

policies. It is only through an adequate coordination that each single action can acquire a

significant meaning and importance, thus making a step forward in the process leading to the

sustainability of the Venetian system.22

Proposals

Cities and institutions at different levels, are now urged to operate transversally, in cooperation with

all the involved subjects.

Therefore, local territorial policies must be integrated with those of a broader area. This can be

achieved in the following ways:

- cooperation among the various competent institutions,

- informal meetings among the sector’s technical representatives, in charge of

planning.

Moreover, it is necessary to invest on training, since through the acquisition of skills, people will be

able to deliver their tasks at a metropolitan level.

21 Comune di Venezia, Piano Strategico, p. 39-43, ottobre 2004 (Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, pp. 39-43, October 2004 )22 Provincia di Venezia, Convegno “PTCP: costruire insieme le scelte”, 27 Gennaio 2006, pp. 2, 3, 6 (Provice of Venice, Conference on Territorial Plan of Coordination, pp. 2, 3, 6, January 27, 2006)

Adoption of a strategic approach

A project can be defined as sustainable when it is developed and implemented through a strategic

approach to be assessed on the effects produced by its action on the medium and long term.

Problem

The traditional approach does not foster cooperation and collaboration among various actors of the

local system. Rather, it tends to bring benefit and focus on short-term results, which are more

visible and usable.

Solution

Only a strategic approach entails a sustainable result. It coordinates the long-term objectives and

the action of various subjects. The Strategic Plan was recently adopted. It represents a unitary

planning process aimed at generating decisions and actions needed to achieve the “new idea of

Venice”, that is the future vision of the city, shared by main actors of the city’s social and economic

sectors.23 The strategy has a mainly economic connotation, however, each strategy contained in

the document – and the connected concrete actions – must comply with the following three guiding

principles:

- social plurality,

- civil solidarity,

- environmental sustainability.24

The main actions embedded in the general strategy are:25

- the definition of strategic thematic guidelines,

- the elaboration of programmes and specific projects,

- the investment in people, to build skills and knowledge.

Proposals

The long-term strategic approach was acknowledged as the only feasible instrument able to

identify and generate the actions required to overcome the current development model26. For the

city of Venice, it will be implemented through:

the actions outlined in the Strategic Plan,

the improved elaboration of a monitoring and evaluating system27 addressed to the

efficiency of the public administration’s policies, with the end of creating a feedback process

that allows – if necessary - for adjustments in the definition of policies and actions during

their own implementation.28

23 Comune di Venezia, D’Agostino R., Presentazione al Piano Strategico,ottobre 2004 (Municipality of Venice, D’Agostino R., Foreword to the Strategic Plan, October 2004)24 Ibidem25 Comune di Venezia, Piano Strategico, pp.119, 120, ottobre 2004 (Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, pp. 119-120, October 2004)26 This was also restated in the Sixth Environment Action Programme, Environment 2010: Our Future, Our Choice that became legally binding with the Decision of European Council and Parliament on July 21st 2002. 27 AA.VV., Monitoring and Evaluating, in Interact Guide, pp.77-79, in http://www.interact-network.org28 Comune di Venezia, Documento Piano Strategico n. 26, Elementi per un Sistema di Monitoraggio – Sintesi, aprile 2004 (Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan Document n. 26, Elements for a Monitoring System – Sinthesis, April

Re-definition of the citizenship concept

A sustainable city is available for everyone to benefit from it in sustainable ways.

Problem

A city that aims at defining itself sustainable, must consider the importance of being “open” from a

social point of view. The city is an open system that exchanges matter and energy with the

surrounding environment. Similarly, when defining policies, it would be a mistake to consider as

addressee only the population actually living in the city. The people who “use” the city, in fact, what

we could label as “city users”, are the residents and the different classes of people, each one with

its specific needs. Therefore when elaborating any action programme every class of city users –

and not only the residents class – must be born in mind.

Solution

The city of Venice has worked out its own definition of “daily population” 29 which embraces all

classes of population using the Venetian territory, by living, working, using the services and

interacting:

- formal permanent population: residents, including those born in the city and those who

have moved to the city, legal immigrants, absent residents

- informal permanent population: informal residents, permanent students, ghosts residents,

illegal immigrants,

- population with changing residence: occasional residents, temporary residents, commuting

students, commuting workers, tourists, people transiting, non-resident street traders,

nomads, people of no fixed abode.

It is therefore necessary to re-define the concept of citizenship30 and acknowledge rights and

duties to all the multiple components related to the city. The new concept will allow a deeper

understanding of the city users’ needs as well as of the opportunities and the advantages they can

bring to the city.

The policies that foster the city’s sustainable development, must therefore address not only

271,000 formal residents31, but also about 430,000 people who make up the “daily population”.

Solution

2004)

29 The concept of “daily population” (“popolazione quotidiana”) is analyzed in the Strategic Plan Document n.9, Popolazione quotidiana e comunità: il caso di Venezia, (Daily population and community: the case of Venice) January 200330 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, pp.39-43, October 2004

31 Strategic Plan Document n.9, Popolazione quotidiana e comunità: il caso di Venezia, (Daily population and community: the case of Venice) January 2003

This series of information need to be analyzed in quantitative and qualitative terms to start a

monitoring process on the characteristics of the daily population over the years, and to single out

the structures that may become necessary reference points, as well as groups of interlocutors or

associations.

Participation and partnership

Making Venice sustainable also means guaranteeing all social components and all local actors the

opportunity to actively participate, express their opinions, contribute, when possible, to a shared

future development, according to their own skills and needs.

Problem

Those responsible for planning must seek for the best solutions oriented to urban sustainability.

This means that such a complex system as the urban one, can be understood and managed only

in the context of governance, where each person plays his/her own role in a responsible manner.

Consequently, a sustainable project can only be developed with the involvement of stakeholders

and citizens. The three reason are as follows:

citizens and stakeholders are a privileged source of knowledge,

the resolution of conflicts is easier at the beginning of the process, rather than when

decisions have been made,

every one has his/her own responsibility and is able to play his/her specific role in society.32

Consistently with a “top-down” approach, the participation process in Italy is usually promoted by

the public administration. Only a small number of initiatives are fostered by single citizens. A few

years ago, the city of Venice launched a number of initiatives to overcome the typical Italian

situation where public involvement is poor. However aware of the fact that involvement cannot be

forced.

Solution

The need to improve both the quantity and the quality of citizens’ participation is a significant goal

that passes through:

- the promotion of environmental and knowledge policies and sustainable behaviour among

the citizens,

- the involvement of a large part of those stakeholders playing a crucial role in the economic

sector, with a view to increase the value of cooperation between the public administration

and the private sector33.

32 With reference to the importance of participation in decision-making, an interesting and in-depth analysis is provided for by the article by E. Laniado, F.Cellina, Comunicazione/Informazione in Materia Ambientale: Metodi e Strumenti a Supporto dei Processi Partecipativi, in «Valutazione Ambientale n°7», Communication/Information in the Environmental Field: Methods and Instruments Supporting Participative Processes, in “Environmental Evaluation n°7” January-June 2005, pp.33-38, EdicomEdizioni33 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, pp. 36

- the involvement of all organizations and structures whose objectives are the support of

specific citizens' classes (for example the elderly, women, immigrants,) and the promotion

of dialogue with traditional institutions.34

The main future goal is to foster inclusion and participation in the decision-making process. All

citizens and public institutions must be aware of its importance and consequently work for an

increased exchange of information and knowledge.

To facilitate this process, it will be needed a greater use of:

specific projects leading to tangible results, since participants need to feel they are

addressing tangible objectives35,

specific structures allowing for a dialogue with the citizens in order to make decision-

processes and laws transparent36,

environmental education activities aimed at promoting both responsibility and the relevant

role of each citizen in achieving sustainability.37

actual monitoring and assessment systems able to evaluate the effects of implemented

policies and to make the necessary adjustments whenever poor or inadequate efficiency

and effectiveness are recorded.

The highest involvement possible and the participation of citizens and stakeholders in the planning

and decision making processes are among the key elements of capital importance in the path

towards sustainability.

34 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan,, pp.97-99, October 200435 The Municipality of Venice promoted two significant projects: CambieReSti? e CambieReSti? Energia 300x70, whose official website is http://www.cambieresti.net 36 The Municipality of Venice has set up an Environmental Information Counter that is a reference aimed at facilitating the understanding of the procedures and rules imposed by law on citizens, entrepreneurs, professionals, in the field of territorial safety and environmental protection http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/ambientario 37 The StilInfo counter was set up for the citizens seeking information on how to make concrete choices for a more sustainable and fair lifestyle. In addition, the ad hoc Office for Environmental Education, http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/ambientario was set up

Towards a new model of economic development

Politicians must govern economic development: problems have to be confronted as new

opportunities.

Problem

It is well known that the economic sector has strong repercussions on sustainable urban

development issues, from both an environmental and social perspective. This does not mean that

sustainability only imposes restrictions to the traditional development model, on the contrary, it

offers new economic opportunities. Sustainability requires a radical cultural change in the way of

thinking and acting.38

At present, the city of Venice is faced with a fragile economic situation and is not sufficiently

prepared to produce values and resources to maintain and boost opportunities. Similarly, it is not

able to overcome those restrictions and situations that are hindering local development.39

Solution

In order to get over the current development model and aim at the achievement of urban

sustainability, it is necessary to shift in the direction of an economy that is:

- shared, through the instruments of company social responsibility too,

- competitive,

- renewed, able to break away from primary industry and able to foster the setting up of

qualified activities in the services sector.

Proposals

As far as planning is concerned, the reorganization of the city’s economic bases is the most

transversal principle. In that, it involves the 3 structural conditions and 7 strategic lines of the

Strategic Plan.

The reorganization can only be achieved by pursuing three general principles:

1. the complexity of the system must be kept. Diversity and complexity are not restrictions,

rather they supply stability and strength to the system,

2. difficulties are new opportunities for development. It is only when faced with the solution to

new problems that we have the opportunity to re-think and review traditional solutions and

methods,

3. resources (environmental, economic, social and cultural ones) must be created and not

used. Only the production of new resources guarantees a long-term development.

38 On the opportunities and advantages that sustainability can offer to economic development, see: Istituto di Ricerche Ambiente Italia (edited by), Ambiente Italia 2005, Edizioni Ambiente, Milano, 200539 Municipality of Venice, D’Agostino R., Foreword to the Strategic Plan ,October 2004

Improvement of environmental quality

In order to improve the quality of environment, the use of resources must be ruled by the principles

of efficiency and sufficiency.

Problem

The concept of sustainability forces human beings to change their traditional approach towards

environmental problems and start a new process aimed at finding new and sounder solutions. The

process requires to single out the main elements responsible for breaking environmental stability

and to then identify the actions needed to restore the balance. All solutions must comply with the

following principles:

- efficiency: the use of resources and energy must aim at achieving the best results while

minimising waste and discards production;

- sufficiency: human beings must restrict the consumption of energy and resources of their

activities.

Proposals

The achievement of better environmental performances poses a great challenge for Venice. The

whole city and its lagoon, in fact, represent a unique, extremely complex ecosystem that cannot be

parted in separate and isolated elements. The peculiar environment has led to the identification of

crucial actions aimed at guaranteeing the environmental quality of the Venetian system. Moreover,

a series of plans to guide this improvement process has been prepared. We shall refer to them and

highlight their most relevant purposes in each field of action.

1. Safeguard of the Lagoon

Problem

The Lagoon of Venice is one of the largest and most important marine ecosystems of the whole

Mediterranean area. It is a humid area with an enormous biological heritage as well as a complex

and fragile system that needs attention and protection. During the last 30 years, the Lagoon has

been the subject of a number of actions aimed at its safeguard. The most relevant concerns the

proposal to create the Natural Park of the Northern Lagoon and aims at guaranteeing a consistent

and sustainable management of natural public property located in this area. This action is

grounded on the concept for which the parks should not be considered as uncontaminated natural

areas, but rather as a sort of laboratory for sustainability in and for the territory. This is especially

important for the Lagoon of Venice, since it is an environment where human presence and its

activities have always played a key role in keeping its fundamental processes and components

alive.40

40 Municipality of Venice, Piano della Laguna (Plan of the Lagoon)Municipality of Venice, Variante al PRG per la Laguna e le Isole Minori – Relazione per la Valutazione d’Incidenza Ambientale ai Sensi della Direttiva Habitat (Variation to the General Town Planning for the Lagoon and Minor Islands – Report for the Evaluation of Environmental Impact in compliance with Habitat Directive) Guerzoni S.,TagliapietraD. (edited by), Atlante della Laguna, Venezia tra Terra e Mare – Estratto, (Atlas of the Lagoon, Venice between Land and Sea – Excerpt) Marsilio, in http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/osservatorio/Estratto_atlante.pdf

Proposals

The first step towards the Lagoon safeguard was to consider it as an integral part of the socio-

economic and territorial system of the city, introducing it among the urban instruments. On a

medium to long term perspective, the goal is as follows:

to improve the environmental management strategy of the entire lagoon area.

2. Green areas

Problem

These kind of areas contribute to provide a “natural network” necessary to the inhabitants’ health

and wellbeing. Free areas in the mainland provide an opportunity to increase the number of green

areas. Some islands of the Lagoon can only serve a naturalistic purpose. Permitting the public use

of large areas until now barred or abandoned to deterioration takes up the additional meaning of

reappropriation of the territory by citizens.

Natural environment restoration may also be understood as the “creation” of long depleted

resources, as a sign that the damages suffered by the territory are not irreversible. Hence, with a

certain effort, the trend of consumption to the benefit of the few can be reversed towards an

improved situation to the benefit of all.41

Proposals

The Municipality is fostering a series of crucial initiatives that will create new resources:

- The Bissuola and San Giuliano’s parks on the mainland

- The Mestre’s Wood and the net of Forts

- Environmental restoration in minor islands.

3. Water management

Problem

Water is the most important resource for both human beings and the natural environment. Its

management represent a crucial action aimed at the preservation or – in some specific situations –

restoration of environmental stability. This is especially important for the Lagoon of Venice, where

water is the capital natural element, whose management is entrusted to the Autorità d’Ambito (i.e.

Special Local Authority) of the Lagoon of Venice. This is a specific authority responsible for the

coordination of all actions in the field for 20 Municipalities of the Venice Province and 5

Municipalities of the Treviso Province, included in the drainage basin of the lagoon.42

Municipality of Venice, Parco naturale della Laguna Nord, (Natural Park of the Northern Lagoon) in “Speciale Ambiente Venezia”, “Venice Environment Special Issue” Notiziario Speciale dell’Assessorato all’Ambiente, Special Newsletter of Local Authority for Environment, March 200441 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, p. 4242 Italian Law L.36/94 entrusted to the AATO (Authorities of Optimal Territorial Ambit) the task of drawing the Master Plan. This is a strategic document aimed at guiding the entire decision-making activity of the Authority in order to organize, implement and govern the integrated water service. The Plan drafted by the AATO Laguna di Venzia is available at http://www.atolagunadivenezia.it

Proposals

Clearly, in order to ensure water preservation and to guarantee its quality, a sustainable and

shared43 water saving strategy is necessary. This was implemented through the Local Agenda 21,

which is the basis for the future management strategy, and which will be implemented through:

restoration and reclamation actions,

studies and researches to qualitatively and quantitatively improve the monitoring activities

on the whole territory,

environmental education initiatives to foster the value of water as a limited resource and a

“public property”,

introduction of strategic environmental assessment in order to verify the match between the

plan and the sustainable development objectives. 44

4. Waste management

Problem

The city of Venice is made up of different parts with different physical characteristics. This means

that waste separated collection on the entire territory of the municipality is a demanding challenge

that requires high resources in terms of funds and personnel. To tackle the problem of waste

management it was decided to focus on environmental education activities. It is believed, in fact,

that a sensible reduction in waste production represents the most cost-effective method to improve

environmental performance in this field.45

Proposals

The main actions46 outlined in the field are:

to spread the separated collection model introduced in the mainland and in two areas of the

historic centre to the entire municipal area,

to maximise separated collection services through the use of new technologies, more funds

and a more rational organization,

to increase the use and to improve the operation of the Fusina integrated Centre for waste

disposal and management.

to promote a development model aimed at the reduction of waste production.

5. Air quality protection

Problem

The findings of monitoring activities show that PM10 - thin dusts - have a great share of

responsibility for air pollution in Venice, as they typically have in big cities. To tackle the issue 43 http://www.atolagunadivenezia.it , AATO Laguna di Venezia, June, 7th 200644 AATO Laguna di Venezia, Master Plan, pp.8-11, in http://www.atolagunadiveneziait Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, pp.61-64, October 200345 Municipality of Venice, Cacciari P., Rifiuti Zero, (Zero Waste) in «Ambiente Venezia», Special Newsletter of Environmental Local Council of the Municipality of Venice, September 200446 http://www.ambiente.venezia.it/rifiuti, http://www.vestaspa.net

effectively, different coordinated actions must be enforced in each sector that is a source of air

pollution, such as for example, traffic, heating and industrial plants.

Studies and researches have shown that industrial plants are the main source of air pollution. Their

management, however, falls within the Province of Venice, not the Municipality.47

Proposals

The high quality of monitoring and assessment of air quality activities are an important starting

point for further studies and researches aimed at elaborating solutions that may be implemented by

both the Municipality and the Province of Venice.

It is also important to try and ensure an adequate communication among the different authorities

responsible for the protection of air quality. It is well known that the correct approach to complex

issues, such as the environmental ones, is one where actions and interventions are coordinated

and integrated.

The following concrete actions48 for the improvement of air quality were fostered:

a widespread promotion of public transport,

the promotion of new technologies for heating facilities and transports, starting from

projects in the public sector,

the drafting of studies and projects for a taxation system imposed on less environmental-

friendly vehicles.

6. Reduction of acoustic, light and electromagnetic pollution

Problem

The Lagoon suffers from both air and water pollution. In addition, it is confronted with

electromagnetic radiations as well as light and acoustic pollution, which characterize urban and

metropolitan areas. Thanks to the control of polluting sources and to strict compliance with

legislation – grounded on an accurate territorial knowledge49 - it is possible to claim that the

Venetian area presents only a few critical situations with regards to the above mentioned types of

pollution.

However, this does not entail us to invest less resources in these tasks in the future. It is

imperative to be forward looking so as to spot in advance all potential problems.

Proposals

47 ARPAV, Municipality of Venice, dr.ssa M.Rosa, dr.ssa S.Pistolato, Qualità dell’Aria nel Comune di Venezia – Rapporto Annuale 2004, (Air Quality in the Venice Municipality – Annual Report) April 200548 Municipality of Venice, D.C. Environment and Territorial Safety, PM10: Scenari per una Soluzione (PM10: scenarios for a Solution)49 Municipality of Venice, D.C. Environment and Territorial Safety, dott.P.Barbieri (edited by), Classificazione Acustica del Territorio Comunale – Relazione, (Acoustic Classification of the Territory – Report) November 2002Municipality of Venice, Resolution n.6 of City Council 30, January2006, Regolamento Comunale per l’Installazione e l’Esercizio degli Impianti per la Telefonia Mobile (Municipality Regulation for Installation and Operation of Mobile Phones Base Stations)Municipality of Venice, Environmen Council, ARPAV (edited by), Rapporto Annuale CEM 2005 (CEM Annual Report 2005)

The general goal in this field is to improve the already implemented strategy’s results. The future

steps will be:

to devise action plans and programmes that are able to combine the needs of the economic

and production sectors with those of individual citizens,

to promote environmental education initiatives to ensure strong communication between

the administration and the citizens,

to integrate and coordinate all actions, ensuring an adequate cooperation level among the

institutions,

to start a careful evaluation and monitoring process for the assessment of developments

occurring during policies implementation.

7. Improvement of performance in the energy field

Problem

All cities are faced with the challenge posed by the energy issue, since urban areas need great

energy supplies for their development and operation. Usually this represents a heavy cost.

The city of Venice ought to achieve more sustainable management and energy consumption, since

any improvement in energy performance equals an important step forward towards sustainability.

Proposals

The city of Venice already counts on two significant instruments aimed at a sustainable energy

management, namely the Municipal Energy Plan (PEC) and the Venice Energy Agency (AGIRE)50.

A general analysis of the situation clearly shows that considerable progress towards sustainability

will be achieved through:

a reduction of energy consumption and its more rational management, which will be

implemented via projects and actions in the public sector51,

the development of renewable energies technologies, with the involvement of both the

manufacturing industries – which can invest in research and projects – and the individual

citizens,

environmental education activities so as to extend to the population more sustainable

lifestyles.52

50 http://www.agire.it, AGIRE, Venice Agency for Agency51 Municipality of Venice, Municipality Energy Plan, 200352 See Cambieresti?300x70 project

Fair access to social and welfare services

A project is sustainable when it maximizes the quality of life

Problem

The rational organization of public services and the adoption of suitable territorial policies are

needed not only to attain greater efficiency in the use of resources, but also to ensure greater

wellbeing. People should in fact live in cities characterized by a high quality of social services and

a high degree of security and wellbeing.

Solutions

The resources and the situation of the Venetian system require a functional and consistent

organization in order to foster social, economic and cultural development. It is important that

people can truly consider Venice as an attractive and safe city that offers to all citizens the

opportunities provided by similar cities of the Veneto region.53

Moreover, the city of Venice must grant special attention to the issues of heath and safety, related

to the question of the risk of relevant accident, arising from the presence of dangerous production

plants’ activities located in the Porto Marghera area.54

Proposals

Citizens have the right to live in a safe and healthy city, before anything else. In addition to this, the

city has to guarantee a high degree of wellbeing. This can be attained through:

the location and strategic management of services, structures and resources for the social

sphere,

the promotion and adoption of new technologies allowing to live a simpler and more

complete life.

A sustainable city allows the citizens to live in an urban environment planned on people’s needs.

Only by considering people as the starting point of all planning policies, will the city be able to

ensure a high quality of life.

53 Municipality of venice, Strategic Plan Document n.43, La Qualità della Vita in Provincia di Venezia – Analisi Comparata del Posizionamento delle Province Venete, (The Quality of Life in the Province of Venice – Compared Analysis on the Veneto Provinces Score) pp.6-9, December 200554 Benatelli N., Parte da Venezia la Frontiera della Giustizia Ambientale, (The Frontier of Environmental Justice Starts fromVenice) in «Venezia Ambiente e Mobilità», Newslettre of Councils for Environmetn and Mobility of the Venice Municipality, pp.31-34

Sustainable mobility and urban accessibility

A sustainable city facilitates urban accessibility, mobility and the quality of the city environment

Problem

The improvement of mobility and accessibility is a great challenge for metropolitan areas.

Nonetheless it brings a series of advantages. From a social viewpoint, people are able to move

more freely and improve their relations. From an economic perspective, it facilitates the movement

of goods and production. Finally, from an environmental point of view, a rational and consistent

movement demands less energy and use the latter in a more efficient way.

The trend of settlements in the area of Venice and its surroundings makes it difficult to transform

traditional mobility in a more sustainable one. Rather, this tends to increase the demand of private

transportation. Moreover, Venice is faced with infrastructural, functional as well as organizational

restrictions leading to a general disadvantaged condition. Difficulties exist in accessibility to the

city, in the connections among the various parts of the city, and between the city and its various

metropolitan urban centres.

Solution

Venice must became a “modern integrated city, bridging lagoon and mainland” 55 with a sustainable

strategy for the mobility system, so as to establish new and better connections with the global,

metropolitan and spatial levels. This challenge must be translated into an efficient logistic and

intermodal development for goods and into an efficient accessibility of urban spaces.56

Proposals

Sustainable mobility implies the use of new eco-friendly technologies and the rationalization of the

system with the end to ensure efficiency while keeping at the same time a high quality of services.

This will be achieved through:

boosting the potential of all type of transportation,

the renewal of public transports thanks to the use of eco-friendly fuels and new

technologies57,

the creation of the Regional Metropolitan Railway System (at a metropolitan level) that will

allow better connections between Venice and other cities as well as an improved

connection system within the entire municipal territory58,

the promotion of public transport and bicycle’s use,

the coordination of all activities of the logistic sector.59

55 Municipality of Venice, Generale Urban Traffick Plan of Mestre and Marghera –Final report, p.956 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, p.76, October 200457 Municipality of Venice, Venezia Ambiente e Mobilità, (Venice Environment and Mobility) Newsletter of Councils for Environment and Mobility of the Venice Municipality, p.658 Ibid, pp.25-2659 Ibid, pp.17-26

Quality of the built environment

The higher the quality of environment built, the more sustainable the city.

Problem

The space built should represent a pleasant environment to live in. The quality of urban life should

not be affected by the differences existing between parts of the city. The citizens have the right to

choose where they want to live and have the right to live in a city with a high urban quality. On

grounds of these claims, it is easy to understand that the physical conditions of the city of Venice

may hinder the planning process oriented to the achievement of the sustainability goals.

Solution

Venice must became a city able to attract people to live in it. Each one of its part will have to be

accessible, well integrated in the mobility system, safe and agreeable. The prejudices on the

different municipal areas will have to be replaced by a new vision of a new city characterized by

the high quality feature.

Proposals

Crucial actions are to be implemented in order to make the different parts of the city more

homogeneous and agreeable. They are the following60:

to promoteinterventions aimed at the restoration , transformation and urban development,

inspired by the principles of bio-architecture, starting from the public administration’s

buildings,

to exploit all the opportunities linked to the renovation of existing buildings or to the

transformation of dismissed areas, 61

to stimulate cooperation with universities, professional and handicrafts centres, and

businesses.

60 Municipality of Venice, Strategic Plan, p. 97, October 200461 Municipality of Venice, D.C. Territorial Development and Mobility, Variante Parziale al PRG per Regolamentare l’Urbanizzazione delle Aree di Danno Soggette a “Rischio di Incidente Rilevante (RIR)”, Elaborato B:Relazione Illustrativa (Partial Variation to the General Town Planning to Discipline areas prone to the “Risk of Relevant Accident”, Essay B: Illustration Report

We thank the participants in the “Progetto commissioni” of the Strategic Plan: your contributions gave great

impetus to the outlining of the “Guidelines”.

We thank the following experts who accepted to be interviewed on the issues of their competence:

Fabrizio D'Oria and Claudio Tomaello, Municipality of Venice, for mobile telephony

Arianna Zancanaro, Municipality of Venice, for air quality

Francesco Penzo, Municipality of Venice for land reclamations outside Porto Marghera and the abandoned

waste

Riccardo Venturi, Municipality of Venice, for waste collection

Cristiana Scarpa, Municipality of Venice, for Smart Plan and environment city council

Federica Boscolo, Atolaguna, for water supply

Your help was remarkably important for the identification of environmental issues.