ECOLOGICAL RESTORATION AND BIODIVERSITY REGENERATION OF “REC COMTAL” IN VALLBONA
The project is based on the ecological restoration as well as the biodiversity and ecosystem regeneration of the Rec Comtal, a historical water canal from the 10th century.
Rec Comtal, one of the most important hydraulic infrastructures in Barcelona, was in a degradation process due to the abandonment it suffered in recent years; therefore, the driving force of the project is to recover and protect its ecological values and transform them into a green infrastructure.
Local
Spain
Barcelona
Vallbona
Montcada i Reixac
Mainly urban
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)
No
No
Yes
2022-10-30
As an individual
First name: Carles Last name: Enrich Gender: Male Nationality: Spain If relevant, please select your other nationality: Spain Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Carrer de Gomis, 26, 08023 Barcelona Town: Barcelona Postal code: 08023 Country: Spain Direct Tel:+34 933 15 34 14 E-mail:studio@carlesenrich.com Website:https://carlesenrich.com/es/
URL:https://www.instagram.com/carlesenrichstudio/ Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): @carlesenrichstudio #RecComtal #biodiversity #heritage #water #Barcelona #connection
Rec Comtal is one of the most important hydraulic infrastructures in Barcelona that supplied water to the city and irrigated its agricultural areas from the 10th century until the middle of the 20th century. During its active period it became a catalyst for public space and allowed the development of agricultural and industrial activity. Currently major part of Rec Comtal has disappeared due to urban growth in recent years; only the first three kilometres remain active. The essence and activity linked to the canal have been lost and the archaeological remains are in a state of neglect.
The aim of the project is to generate a unitary identity and environmental continuity; to recover and protect its ecological values; to promote improved provision of ecosystem services and to create bases for inclusive, accessible, and safe spaces.
The project recovers the Rec Comtal, both historically and naturally. The actions carried out are part of a larger Master Plan that is divided into 7 sections to allow a phased implementation. The first sector is based on the ecological and environmental restoration of the surroundings in the starting points of the canal located in the district of Vallbona.
In addition to the ecological restoration, it creates an itinerary with new public spaces for the interpretation of the archaeological remains and the historical memory, which connect the 11 neighbourhoods of Barcelona and represent a link between two cities.
Two viewpoints, composed by light structures, are built supported on pre-existing elements that allow an approach to the water whilst improving the user’s safety. The new lookout points act as landscape marks that will have an extension at other points of the Rec Comtal’s layout.
Biodiversity
Ecological
Heritage
Restoration
Reactivation
The key objective in terms of sustainability is the ecological restoration of a context in the process of degradation and the environmental regeneration of the site to face climate change.
To achieve the goal, riverside vegetation and macrophyte species are planted in order to improve water quality (Fraxinus Angustifolia, Salix atrocinerea, Vinca difformis, Vitex agnus-castus, Iris pseudacorus, Carex pendula, Scirpus holoschoenus, Juncus.) and to create shade which will reduce the water temperature and build a suitable habitat for new recovered species.
In a context of deteriorated biodiversity and heritage, the project constitutes an exemplary guide taking into consideration the actions implemented which enable the restoration of an optimal habitat for the proliferation of animal and plant species. There is also a incorporation of energetic efficiency measures, durability, and low maintenance costs.
Furthermore, it represents an example of reintroduction of green areas in urban environments.
The main objectives in terms of aesthetic and experimental basis are the establishment of a respectful dialogue between the pre-existence and the project, the enhancement of social relationships between users, as well as the introduction of cultural and environmental quality spaces on the site.
The project is not only based on the recovery and renaturation of the heritage; it also generates a walk alongside the 11 neighbourhoods that were crossed by the Rec Comtal and the construction of two biodiversity lookout points.
The walk promotes physical activity and sustainable mobility, while the lookout points act as landscape landmarks that will have an extension at other points of the Rec Comtal. With the actions mentioned above, we improve the quality of life of users and the ecosystems that inhabit them.
Through the design of the biodiversity lookout points, we managed to bring people closer to nature, water and heritage. Being composed of corrugated profiles that let you see through; we generate a sense of transparency that brings users closer to the pre-existence.
The ecological restoration of green areas within the city allows equal access to all citizens to spaces of elevated environmental quality which improve their quality of life. At the same time, it protects and regenerates the ecosystem. With the creation of the green corridor, we enable accessible spaces that promote physical activity and serve as a catalyst for social life.
The action promotes the environmental policies of the city that aim to introduce green spaces in the urban environment to strengthen its greenery structure and enrich biodiversity. At the same time, it is an opportunity to provide a habitat for quality flora and fauna and to promote natural processes of balanced and resilient ecosystems.
The aim of the project is to generate a unitary identity and environmental continuity; to recover and protect the patrimonial elements; to promote improved provision of ecosystem services and to create bases for inclusive, accessible and safe spaces.
The project was designed according to the needs of users and the ecosystem of the water canal.
Firstly, the creation of green spaces in the urban area improves the quality of life of users; it means an environmental improvement for the neighbourhood and makes available to citizens leisure spaces that promote social interaction and the reactivation of the site.
Secondly, there is an improvement in safety with the creation of railings which protect from the risk of falling.
It should also be noted that during the development of the project the neighbour’s input was taken into consideration through a participatory process. The way in which the space was used prior to the intervention, served as an indicator to design according to the needs and wants of its users.
Barcelona City Council has been actively involved in the process and highly interested in the recovery of heritage and the ecosystem restoration.
Being a link between two cities, it has involved different organisms at local and regional levels.
A key element for the City Council was a broad communication of the project, this is why a guide has been designed that will allow citizens to follow the path of the canal and understand the totality of the project and the continuity of the forgotten heritage.
The project addresses the issue of climate change, the preservation and restoration of its environment as well as the use of green areas as connecting areas.
Each of these elements benefit from the proper overall functioning. A balance between the different actors is needed for the success of the project. The new vegetation helps the good development and proliferation of the fauna, while this helps the process of phytodepurtation of the water and therefore a better environment for the riverside vegetation. It is a closed cycle in which different users play an essential role.
For this reason, the project had to respond to various disciplines concerning the flora, fauna, and constructive elements of the canal. All of them work in synergy to lead to a project for the recovery and reactivation of fauna and heritage.
In relation to the reconnection with nature, the results obtained have been an ecological restoration of the Rec Comtal and the construction of two lookout points which bring users closer to nature, water and heritage.
The results obtained are the following:
- Control of water quality
- Improvement of the urban living environment, making it safer and more pleasant and increasing its educational character.
- Contribution to local biodiversity by promoting, protecting, and connecting species and habitats and generating diverse, self-sustaining, and resilient ecosystems.
- Regeneration of the area of the canal by demolishing the structures of contemporary times that conduct it.
- Extension of the surfaces in contact with the water along the route of the Rec Comtal to generate a richer ecotone.
- Construction of lookout points structures overlooking the canal.
- Generation of a new path, recovering the historical configuration, allowing the view over the canal and increasing the permeabilization of the soil.
- Provision of resting spaces on the path next to the canal that function as climate shelters and have information for the interpretation of the Rec Comtal.
This is an innovative project as a result of the implementation of systems such as:
- Bioengineering systems for placing vegetation rolls with stakes on the edge of the channel.
- Hydroseeding, a technique used in environmental restoration that consists of projecting a mixture of seeds and other elements on the ground.
- Replacing materials such as concrete with natural materials such as soil to recover the character of the canal and improve its biological functioning.
- Reintroduction of endangered plant and animal species
The action consists mainly in the deconstruction and movement of concrete elements and steep slopes of the current banks, to generate a wider surface of contact between land and water, to improve the ecotone and allow the correct implantation of new vegetation.
In direct contact with water, macrophyte plants are planted by bioengineering systems, placing vegetated rolls with stakes on the bank of the canal. In the continuation of the new slope is carried out a hydroseeding and planting of small leaf plants wich will improve the thermal comfort of these areas generating climate shelters. For the correct implantation of the vegetation temporary fences are placed.
Both actions have the same objective: the ecological restoration of the environment of the Rec Comtal, regenerating riverside vegetation which improves the environmental quality of the surrounding and results in multiple ecosystem services.
The project is part of a larger Master Plan that includes the recovery of 14 km of Rec Comtal throughout Barcelona.
These criteria are designed to be replicated at other points along the water canal and allow the recovery of the forgotten heritage, as well as the biodiversity in a state of degradation:
- Reach the maximum permeable surface and infiltration of rainwater into the subsoil.
- Introduce native and landscape vegetation as a fundamental element of the project of urbanisation.
- Guaranteeing urban continuity that promotes sustainable mobility
- Maintain all existing natural and heritage elements, including archaeological, cultural, ecological and social heritage
- Incorporate energy efficiency measures, durability, and low maintenance cost.
- Use durable materials (permeable pavements and easy-to-maintain furniture) and energy efficiency (energy-efficient lighting with presence sensors) and quality vegetation (saving irrigation water, continuous trees, green strips for parking lots, large and vertical tree species, which do not invade the road)
The implementation of the actions seeks an integral improvement of numerous locations of the city and establishes criteria that can be replicated in all those parts where a ecological restoration of the canal is necessary. This project can serve as an example for the enhancement of heritage and green spaces in the city.
Through local actions, the project addresses climate change and its devastating effects.
On the one hand it helps with the ecological restoration of several ecosystems in the process of degradation. Consequently, there’s a reduction of the amount of carbon dioxide in the air and allows users to enjoy spaces of high environmental quality. Replicating strategies across several points of Rec Comtal a green corridor throughout the city is configurated.
On the other hand, they help mitigate the effects of climate change through the permeabilization of soil by water drainage. Furthermore, it generates climate shelters that contribute to the creation of cooler spaces to cope with the rise in temperature.
The project addresses the issue of climate change, the preservation and restoration of its environment as well as the use of green areas as connecting elements.
