, Portugal
City population: 981829
Duration: 2016 – 2021
Implementation status: Ongoing
Scale: Meso-scale: Regional, metropolitan and urban level
Project area: 170000 m2
Type of area: Residential
Last updated: October 2021

The Porto Biospots Network is a partnership of the Municipality with "Infraestruturas de Portugal", and is a network of urban forest areas (predominantly autochthonous) that aims to allow the reforestation of adjacent transit routes, major highway nodes, and routes of circulation within the city, transforming environmentally poor lands into green areas that provide multiple ecological services. This initiative foresees the reforestation of 14 areas and the planting of 10,000 trees by 2021, having already completed 2 roads, with a total of 1305 native trees planted. The biospot is the materialization of a part of the Municipal Ecological Structure of Porto. [1][4]

Porto Biospots Network
Porto Biospots Network
CRE.Porto, retrieved 08/31/2018 from Marta Pinto

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Grey infrastructure featuring greens
  • Alley or street trees and other street vegetation
  • Other
  • Parks and urban forests
  • Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces

Key challenges

  • Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
  • Climate change adaptation
  • Climate change mitigation
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Habitat and biodiversity conservation
  • Green space creation and/or management
  • Environmental quality
  • Air quality improvement
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Creation of opportunities for recreation

Focus

Creation of new green areas

Project objectives

The goal of the Biospots Network is to promote biodiversity, ecosystem services, adaptation to climate change and landscape improvement. [1] The 10,000 trees to be planted by 2021 will offer "invisible" services to the city and the Portuguese, such as retention of air pollutants and carbon storage, estimated at € 500,000 per year (as adults). In addition, they have the potential to store approximately 50 tonnes of carbon per year, contributing to the measures set out in the Municipal Strategy for Adapting to Climate Change. [1]

Implementation activities

A network of urban forest areas in the city of Porto will be created to promote biodiversity, ecosystem services, adaptation to climate change and landscaping. The Porto Biospots Network will consist of 14 areas when completed, that are distributed along the major roadway nodes of the city, totaling a useful area of ​​17 hectares. By 2021, it is planned to install and maintain about 10,000 new trees and shrubs. As of 2018, 2 out of 14 areas have been completed, Francos Node and Node do Regado. [1][2][4]

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

Climate change mitigation:

  • Increase green urban nature for carbon storage (wetlands, tree cover)
  • Improve carbon sequestration through selection of more adaptable species

Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities

Biodiversity conservation:

  • Protect and enhance urban habitats
  • Create new habitats
  • Protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect native species

Main beneficiaries

  • Local government/Municipality
  • Non-government organisation/Civil Society
  • Citizens or community groups

Governance

Management set-up

  • Co-governance with government and non-government actors

Type of initiating organisation

  • Local government/municipality

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
  • Citizen oversight (e.g. boards, advisory)

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

The Porto Biospots Network is a project promoted by the Municipality of Porto in partnership with Infraestruturas de Portugal SA and the Metropolitan Area of ​​Porto, and is framed in under the umbrella project FUN ("Florestas Urbanas Nativas do Porto", Porto Urban Native Forests) and in the "FUTURO" project of 100,000 trees in the Metropolitan Area of Porto. To guarantee the integrity and adequacy of the interventions, an Advisory Group was created, consisting of researchers from several universities, from the architectural to the environmental health areas. FUN is an integrated project that promotes knowledge about and expansion of urban forests in Porto. [3]

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? Yes (The creation of green infrastructures has been stimulated by the European Commission as an opportunity to achieve ecological, economic and social benefits through natural solutions. [1] )
... a national policy or strategy? Unknown
... a local policy or strategy? Yes (Biospot is part of the new Municipal Master Plan (PDM) review. Additionally, the Native Urban Forests of Porto (FUN) project is an initiative of the Municipality of Porto that aims expand the urban forests under the motto ‘Because the trees are good for the territory, people and the economy of the city.'This project includes 5 areas:1) Nursery of Native Trees and Shrubs of Porto- space where native species of the Porto region are produced that will feed the processes of reforestation of the areas allocated to the FUN,2) "If you got a garden we got a tree for you"- free provision of native trees and shrubs to residents with garden, yard or own land,3)Porto Biospots Network - reforestation of the adjacent transit routes to the main nodes and routes of circulation in the city,4) Porto Trees Route- a set of themed visits to green spaces with the purpose of appreciating the arboreal patrimony of the city,5) Porto Biolab- intends to create forest laboratory service on an degraded area. [4] )

Financing

Total cost

€10,000 - €50,000

Source(s) of funding

  • Public local authority budget
  • Funds provided by non-governmental organization (NGO)

Type of funding

  • Earmarked public budget
  • Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)

Non-financial contribution

Type of non-financial contribution
  • Provision of land
  • Provision of goods
  • Provision of labour
  • Provision of expertise
Who provided the non-financial contribution?
  • Public authorities (e.g. land, utility services)
  • Citizens (e.g. volunteering)

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Climate change
  • Enhanced carbon sequestration
  • Green space and habitat
  • Increased green space area
  • Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems

Economic impacts

  • Generation of income from NBS

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Unknown

Type of reported impacts

Expected impacts

Presence of formal monitoring system

Yes

Presence of indicators used in reporting

Yes

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

References

[1] Municipality of Porto (no date), Rede de Biospots do Porto, Available at Source link, (Accessed 22-6-2020)

[2] Municipality of Porto (2018), Hundreds of native trees and shrubs will forest the Francos Node [Centenas de árvores e arbustos autóctones vão florestar o Nó de Francos], Available at Source link (Accessed 22-6-2020)

[3] 100Milarvores (2018), Another small native forest in the city of Porto [Mais um pequeno bosque nativo na cidade do Porto], Available at Source link (Accessed 22-6-2020)

[4] Source link (2018), Development Area: Reforestation - FUN Porto (Native Urban Forests Of Porto), Available at Source link (Accessed 22-6-2020)

[5] Municipality of Porto (2018), "Green" solutions are re-creating the urban landscape [Soluções "verdes" estão a recriar a paisagem urbana], Available at Source link (Accessed 22-6-2020)

[6] Pinto, M., Almeida, C., Pereira, A.M., Silva, M. (2016). Urban Forest Governance: FUTURE- The 100,000 Trees Project in the Porto Metropolitan Area. In CASTRO, Paula ...[et al.] (Eds.) - Biodiversity and Education for Sustainable Development. [S.l.]: Springer International Publishing (World Sustainability Series). ISBN 978-3-319-32318-3. p. 187-202

Porto Biospots Network
Porto Biospots Network
CRE.Porto, retrieved 08/31/2018 from Marta Pinto