Nature-based solutions for urban water management: application of filtering gardens, rain gardens and bio-culverts

• DOI: 10.22533/at.ed.2163323010210

• Palavras-chave: Nature-based solutions; Phytoremediation; Green Infrastructure; Filtering Gardens; Rain Gardens; Biovalleys.

• Keywords: Nature-based solutions; Phytoremediation; Green Infrastructure; Filtering Gardens; Rain Gardens; Biovalleys.

• Abstract:

  This article presents the planning process, implementation and preliminary results of the use of filtering gardens, rain gardens and bio-culverts for the treatment of effluents and management of rainwater at the Research & Innovation Center of L'Oréal Brasil, located in Rio de Janeiro. The research was carried out from 2015 to 2017, from project development to construction and operation of the systems involved. The research aimed to recognize the collaboration of phytoremediation, a Nature-based Solution ( SbN ) that makes use of plants for depollution, as a strategy for the composition of the urban landscape and water management, adding multifunctionality to spaces. As a result, the technical efficiency of the solutions, operational simplicity, enrichment of biodiversity and wide acceptance of green areas as spaces for conviviality and appreciation of the landscape were identified. The study also brought the collaborative and integrative tendency of professionals in the development of the multidisciplinary project, demonstrating the viability of a sustainable and systemic planning in the design of cities that are more integrated with nature. As warning points, as it is a natural and living system, vulnerabilities of plant species were mapped, which needed replacement through the division of clumps, in addition to the need for a period of maturation of the system to reach effluent treatment efficiency, considering that plants need time for growth and the formation of a robust root zone.