Last updated: May 2025
The Cagliari Canal project is an initiative aimed at revitalizing and transforming the urban and natural landscape of the Cagliari Metropolitan Area in Sardinia. The project is rooted in the city's strategic metropolitan plan and seeks to restore and enhance the navigability of the Terramaini-La Palma canal, which had become disused and neglected over time (3,4). The primary goal of the Cagliari Canal project is to develop a connected, innovative, and sustainable urban environment by re-establishing the canal as a green and blue infrastructure (2). It aims to provide alternative, sustainable mobility options, improve connectivity between municipalities, and enhance the natural and urban environments. It strives to foster a sense of community by creating a shared space for residents and integrating modern amenities that align with environmental sustainability (1,4). It involved a highly participatory process, emphasizing community involvement from the initial planning stages. The Metropolitan Authority of Cagliari, in collaboration with local stakeholders, launched a series of consultations to gather public input on the canal's design and function(3). These consultations were part of a broader initiative called LabMet, the Metropolitan Laboratory for Innovation, which facilitated the collection of ideas and feedback (1). The project was partly developed in response to the increasing environmental challenges faced by Cagliari, including the need to adapt to climate change. The canal's revitalization is seen as a key measure for enhancing the city's resilience to climate-related risks, such as flooding and heat waves(1). By restoring the canal and its surrounding areas, the project aims to mitigate these risks through improved water management, reducing pollution, and the creation of green spaces that can absorb excess rainwater and provide cooling effects (2)
map of the canal
https://partecipa.cittametropolitanacagliari.it/processes/Propostecanalenavigabile/f/10/
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Blue infrastructure
- Rivers/streams/canals/estuaries
- Parks and urban forests
- Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
- Green corridors and green belts
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Environmental quality
- Air quality improvement
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Green space creation and/or management
- Water management (SDG 6)
- Flood protection
- Improvements to water quality
- Health and well-being (SDG 3)
- Creation of opportunities for recreation
Principal problems in Functional Urban Area (FUA)
- Climate-Related Hazards
- Coastal hazards (e.g. erosion, flooding)
- Heat stress & Extreme temperatures
- Environmental Degradation
- Biodiversity loss
- Poor water quality
- Health, Well-being and Social cohesion
- Inadequate access to recreational opportunities
Key priorities
Climate action (adaptation and/or mitigation)
Focus
Maintenance and management of urban nature, Maintenance or upgrade of exisiting green spaces (e.g. parks), Ecological restoration of ecosystems, Restoration and protection of ecosystems (including water ecosystems)
Project objectives
The vision is one of a metropolitan area that is green, liveable, thriving and, above all, one that listens to its residents. The city is working with locals to uncover and regenerate the waterway, making it a pathway for smart and environmental mobility, a place to gather and meet, a safe haven for biodiversity and an integrated experiential narrative (Ref 1).
Specific goals include:
- To enhance the city’s resilience to climate-related risks by improving water management and increasing green space (Ref 1, 2).
- Restore the canal’s ecological and mobility function (Ref 1, 2)
- Enhance biodiversity and urban green-blue networks (Ref 2)
- Promote sustainable transport (electric boats, cycling paths) (Ref 1, 2)
- Support climate resilience, intermodality, and air quality (Ref 2)
- Creating tree-lined avenues and new green spaces along the canal corridor helps mitigate urban heat island effects (Ref 2).
Implementation activities
- Restoration of the Terramaini–La Palma canal to create a continuous green-blue corridor connecting urban and natural areas (Ref. 1, 2)
- Creation of tree-lined avenues along both sides of the canal and adjacent cycling paths to combat urban heat and improve air quality (Ref. 2)
- Development of new green public spaces and improved ecological connectivity along the canal route, linking to Molentargius Park and the S. Gilla lagoon (Ref. 2)
- Integration with green and blue infrastructure networks, enhancing the resilience of Cagliari’s wetland ecosystems (Ref. 2)
- Installation of electric boat infrastructure, including recharging stations, supporting clean mobility and reducing air pollution (Ref. 2)
- Inclusion of sports and recreational water-based uses (e.g. canoe storage) to promote sustainable interaction with aquatic ecosystems (Ref. 2)
- Energy optimization of surrounding public buildings (schools, markets, sports facilities) as part of the broader “Sustainable Ring” strategy (Ref. 2)
- Landscape enhancement around docking points, designed to blend sustainable mobility infrastructure with natural aesthetics (Ref. 2)
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect
Main beneficiaries
- Citizens or community groups
- Young people and children
Governance
Management set-up
- Government-led
Type of initiating organisation
- Local government/municipality
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
- Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
- Citizen monitoring and review
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
The Cagliari Metropolitan Area used the canal project to test innovative participatory approaches, empowering residents to shape the city's vision and practical measures. Through the Metropolitan Laboratory for Innovation (LabMet), local people, businesses, academic institutions, and other stakeholders contributed ideas on various aspects, including the future of the city and the placement of boat stops along the canal. The consultation involved all relevant actors in the Cagliari area, including local government bodies, third-sector entities, informal citizen groups, schools, universities, research centers, professionals, businesses, and active citizens. These groups provided feedback through questionnaires, addressing the location and accessibility of canal stops, among other issues. With the initial participatory phase now complete, project leaders and engineers are reviewing all responses to ensure that public input and useful insights are incorporated into the final designs (1,3,4
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Yes
(The intervention is part of the System Action within the Metropolitan Strategic Plan drawn up by the Metropolitan City of Cagliari. Ref 2)
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Unknown
Type of enablers
City network or regional partnerships focused on climate change, sustainability, GI or NBS in the city
Financing
Total cost
More than €4,000,000
Source(s) of funding
- Public local authority budget
- Public national budget
Type of funding
- Earmarked public budget
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Climate change
- Lowered local temperature
- Expected lowered local temperature
- Reduced emissions
- Expected reduced emissions
- Water management and blue areas
- Increased protection against flooding
- Expected increased protection against flooding
- Green space and habitat
- Increased green space area
- Achieved increased green space area
- Increased ecological connectivity across regeneration sites and scales
- Achieved increased ecological connectivity across regeneration sites and scales
- Reduced biodiversity loss
- Expected reduced biodiversity loss
- Enhanced support of pollination
- Expected enhanced support of pollination
Economic impacts
- More sustainable tourism
- Expected more sustainable tourism
- Increased property prices
- Expected increased property prices
Socio-cultural impacts
- Social justice and cohesion
- Improved social cohesion
- Expected improved social cohesion
- Improved access to urban green space
- Expected improved access to urban green space
- Increased opportunities for social interaction
- Achieved increased opportunities for social interaction
- Increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
- Achieved increased involvement of locals in the management of green spaces
- Education
- Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
- Expected increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Type of reported 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
Potential risks of implementation and trade-offs
Unknown
References
1.
Eurocities (2023). Cagliari canal a wellspring for community. Accessed on September 26, 2024, [Source link];
2.
Città Metropolitana di Cagliari (2023). Il Canale navigabile della Città Metropolitana di Cagliari. Accessed on September 26, 2024, [Source link];
3.
Città Metropolitana di Cagliari (2023). The navigable canal of the Metropolitan City of Cagliari. Accessed on September 26, 2024, [Source link];
4.
URBANCENTER (n.d.). Il Canale Navigabile della Città di Cagliari, pensiamolo insieme!. Accessed on September 26, 2024, [Source link];
5.
CONSORZIO PARCO REGIONALE NATURALE MOLENTARGIUS SALINE (2006). il paesaggio delle vie d’acqua a cagliari. Accessed on September 26, 2024, [Source link];
park next to the canal
https://eurocities.eu/stories/cagliari-canal-a-wellspring-for-community/
photo taken during a workshop
https://eurocities.eu/stories/cagliari-canal-a-wellspring-for-community/
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the Naturescapes project funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No 101084341.