Last updated: October 2021
As part of the restoration of park Denis Gardens, an innovative water element was built consisting of water flowing down the stairs, circulated and cleaned by a pump and filters. This helps regulate the local microclimate by reducing temperatures in hot days and creating humidity in the air (Ref. 1; Ref. 5). Also, the element allows people to walk bare-footed and cool off. In addition, the water reduces air pollution by extracting dust from the air, and the structure has an aesthetic and recreational function, with a restaurant underneath. (Ref. 1; Ref. 2; Ref. 6).
Water Stairs in the Denis Gardens in Brno
Source: https://www.lifetreecheck.eu/cs/Blog/Vodni-schody (Foto: Veřejná zeleň města Brna)
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Parks and urban forests
- Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
- Blue infrastructure
- Other
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Green space creation and/or management
- Environmental quality
- Air quality improvement
- Regeneration, land-use and urban development
- Regulation of built environment
- Health and well-being (SDG 3)
- Enabling opportunities for physical activity
- Creation of opportunities for recreation
Focus
Creation of semi-natural blue areas, Maintenance and management of urban nature
Project objectives
The project aimed to:
- Enhance the recently renovated sloping terrain at the mouth of the dead-end street of Bašty. (Ref. 1)
- Create aesthetic and recreational appeal for local guests (Ref. 6).
- Create microclimate conditions that ameliorate some heat during summers through waterflow, direct contact with water, and created humidity (Ref. 1; Ref. 2).
- Reduce air pollution by decreasing dust (Ref. 1; Ref. 5).
Implementation activities
An innovative water element was built in park Denis Gardens, consisting of water flowing down the stairs, circulated and cleaned by a pump and filters. (Ref. 1) This occurred during a widescale rennovation of the park (Ref. 6). The pump runs every summer, and is removed during the winter months and repaired (Ref. 1).
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Increase or improve urban vegetation cover to help reduce outdoor temperature
- Create or improve outdoor spaces to help people escape from urban heat
Main beneficiaries
- Citizens or community groups
Governance
Management set-up
- Government-led
Type of initiating organisation
- Local government/municipality
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Unknown
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
The investor was the agency Veřejná zeleň města Brna, who are in charge of maintaining, reconstructing and improving the state of "public greenery" in Brno. The organisation is a subsidiary of Brno City Council. They are also responsible for maintaining the Water Stairs. The project was implemented by the construction company Žabièka TZB spol. s. r.o..
(Ref. 1; Ref. 3)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Unknown
Financing
Total cost
€10,000 - €50,000
Source(s) of funding
- Public local authority budget
Type of funding
- Earmarked public budget
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Climate change
- Lowered local temperature
- Environmental quality
- Improved air quality
- Other
Economic impacts
- Unknown
Socio-cultural impacts
- Health and wellbeing
- Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Cultural heritage and sense of place
- Improvement in people’s connection to nature
- Protection of historic and cultural landscape / infrastructure
- Increased sense of place identity, memory and belonging
- Other
Type of reported impacts
Achieved impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Unknown
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
References
Ref. 1. UrbanAdapt (2015). Adaptace na zmenu klimatu ve mestech pomocí prírode blízkých opatrení. [pdf] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 2. ESB-magazin (2016). Téma: Změna klimatu a zelené střechy. [pdf] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 3. Veřejná zeleň města Brna (2017). O nás. [online] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 4. UrbanAdapt (2015). O projectu. [online] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 5. Zemanova, L. (2019). Water stairs cool and invite you to refresh. [online]. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 6. Denik. (2007). Water stairs connect the colonnade with bastions. [online]. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 2. ESB-magazin (2016). Téma: Změna klimatu a zelené střechy. [pdf] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 3. Veřejná zeleň města Brna (2017). O nás. [online] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 4. UrbanAdapt (2015). O projectu. [online] [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 5. Zemanova, L. (2019). Water stairs cool and invite you to refresh. [online]. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Ref. 6. Denik. (2007). Water stairs connect the colonnade with bastions. [online]. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on July 27 2020].
Water Stairs in the Denis Gardens in Brno
Source: https://www.lifetreecheck.eu/cs/Blog/Vodni-schody (Foto: Veřejná zeleň města Brna)