Informal greenspace as green infrastructure?Potential, challenges and future directions

Christoph Rupprecht (@focx)Jason Byrne (@citybyrne)

Environmental Futures Research InstituteGriffith University

AAG Annual Meeting 2016

Formal green space vs. green infrastructure

Green space• Parks, gardens,

conservation areas• ‘Nice to have’ (Benedict

& McMahon 2006)• Focus on recreation• Planned & designed

Green infrastructure• Conflicting definitions on what

counts as green infrastructure• ‘Must have’ (Benedict &

McMahon 2006)• ‘human-modified’ ‘intentional

landscapes’ (Matthews et al. 2015/Byrne et al. 2015)

Functions & problems of parks and green infrastructure

Potential functions, e.g.• Air quality regulation• Temperature regulation• CO2 absorption• Water management• Noise filtration• Conservation, habitat• Recreation, human health• Aesthetic improvement• Food/fuel production• Economic development

(e.g. real estate value)(Luque & Duff)

New York High Line, David Berkowitz, Flickr

Potential problems, e.g.• Implementation & maintenance

costs (Naumann et al. 2010)

• Expectations of economic returns • Eco-gentrification (Wolch et al. 2014)

• Failure to meet diverse needs of local residents (Campo 2013)

What about spontaneous, informal green spaces?

Street verges Gap spaces

Railway verges

Brownfields

River/canal banks

Vacant lots

Overgrown structures Powerlines

‘Informal’ green infrastructure?

Informal greenspace: A shift in perception

Nuisance Nice to have Must have?

Ecology

Planning

Decay Temporary use

Abandonment ‘Just green enough’ tool

Crime Recreation

Dead space Novel ecosystems

Urban ecology ‘de facto natives’

Invasives Diverse habitats

Beyond parks: Research on informal green spaces

Recreation studies (>65) (e.g., Jorgensen & Keenan 2012; Campo 2013; Barron & Mariani 2013; Franck & Stevens 2007; Foster 2014; Rupprecht et al. 2015a/b)

Lack of official recognition leads to freedom from purpose

Can be used flexibly as needed✗ Aesthetic value contested (wild

vs. orderly & bucolic)✗ Vulnerable to development

Biodiversity studies (>170) (e.g., Bonthoux et al. 2014; Brandes 1983, 1992; Cilliers & Bredenkamp 1998, 1999a/b; Kowarik 2011; Rupprecht & Byrne 2014; R. et al. 2015c)

Important role for conservation ‘De facto native vegetation’ ~14% of urban green space✗ Maintenance common and

negative impact on diversity✗ Can harbor invasive species

Informal greenspace as green infrastructure: Functions

Function Evidence level Studies (examples)Recreation (human health) Systematic review Rupprecht & Byrne 2014

Conservation, habitat Systematic reviews Bonthoux et al. 2014, Rupprecht et al. 2015

Food/fuel production Case studies Diaz-Betancourt et al. 1999, McLain et al. 2014

‘Just green enough’ devel. Case studies Foster 2014, Rupprecht & Byrne 2015

Air quality regulation Case studies Weber et al. 2014, McPhearson et al. 2013

Temperature regulation Case studies McPhearson et al. 2013

CO2 absorption Case studies McPhearson et al. 2013

Water management Case studies McPhearson et al. 2013

Aesthetic improvement Mixed evidence Rink and Emmerich 2005, Qviström 2012, Rupprecht et al. 2015

Noise filtration Not studied?

Economic development Indirect negat. effect?

IGS as green infrastructure in shrinking cities

• Expansion of vacant land, but:• Lack of resources to convert it

easily into formal green infra• ‘Depopulation dividend’ (Matanle):

chance for sustainability, reconfigure urban space

• Shift to needs-based community management?

• Coming to terms with loss of control over urban nature?

• Intentional ‘rewilding’ vs. non-intervention approach (Hard 2001)

• Potential to satisfy growing demand for urban agriculture & gardening, shrink cities’ food shed

Lot42%

Gap19%Street

verge16%

Brown-field10%

Wa-ter-side10%

Sapporo IGS

IGS as green infrastructure in growing cities

• High land cost for green infra• Strong development pressure• Sinking per capita private &

public green space provision• Temporary benefits from

spontaneous vegetation in transitional sites

• Source of ‘unclaimed territory’ (Cloke & Jones 2005), that ‘disciplines neither people in their actions nor nature in its development’ (Nohl 1990)?

• Opportunity to maximize benefits via policies (e.g., interim use, street verge gardening)

Lot8%

Street verge80%

Brown-field5%

Railway5%

Brisbane IGS

Informal greenspace as green infrastructure: Problems

• Liminal

space

• Access

• Liability

• Pollution

• Planability

• Cultural norms

IGS as green infrastructure: Roadmap for future research

“Basic” research• IGS quantity• IGS types• Spatiality• Temporality• Current usage• Past usage• Ecology• Biodiversity• Lifecycle / generation• Towards theory of IGS?• Implications for theory

(e.g. more-than-human)?• …

“Applied” research• Ecosystem (dis-)services• Potential future usage• Management approaches• Anti-gentrification potential• Legal dimensions• Planning & policy…

IGS as green infra: Interdisciplinary research endeavor!

•IGS

• Ecology

• Conservation

• Political ecology

• Environmental justice

• Geography

• Planning

• Landscape architectur

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