B.Green project pilots new digital tools and miniparks for newly built neighbourhoods to support the work of urban planners in Helsinki’s Kalasatama.
Kalasatama is one of Helsinki’s new and more densely built residential districts. Solutions for new urban green infrastructure are piloted by B.Green in Kalasatama’s sub-area Sompasaari.
“When the city becomes denser, simply designating a certain area for green spaces is no longer enough. Plants and trees should be carefully chosen and placed when aiming at influencing temperatures and securing the habitats for pollinators in the city”, says B.Green’s Technical Expert Lauri Lemmenlehti. Landscape architect Lemmenlehti is responsible for developing digital tools in the project and he works closely with the urban planners of Kalasatama. With digital tools, the planners can better visualise plans for green infrastructure in real life and explore how different plant species might affect urban conditions.
In Loviseholm’s park in Sompasaari, a pilot is carried out in September together with the company Granlund. In reality, the park is still under construction but with Granlund’s augmented reality based mobile application, residents can view how it will look once it’s ready. In addition to viewing the park plan, the application allows users to place virtual trees and bushes into the landscape in real-time. XR Developer Mao Lin from Granlund says that the application will first be available for anyone but it has potential for further development to be utilised by professionals when planning green spaces for the urban environment.
While urban plans in Kalasatama’s northernmost parts are still under development, construction in the southern part of the district is rapidly moving forward. As usual, green spaces in newly built areas are finished the last in Kalasatama, too.
Another pilot in Sompasaari is carried out with Parkly, a modular green minipark that brings temporary greenery into the still unfinished urban environment. The module consists of seating areas and plant boxes filled with herbs, small trees, pollinator-friendly flowers and vegetables. The module is equipped with sensors provided by SensCity, producing hyper local environmental data about weather conditions and soil moisture. Similar sets of sensors are installed in the inner courtyard and green roof of the residential block next door.
“Our goal is to collect data about the impact of green infrastructure on urban conditions during the upcoming year”, says Project Coordinator Mette Hiltunen from the B.Green project. Understanding the benefits of green elements is essential in densely populated urban areas as extreme weather conditions, such as heavy rainfall and heatwaves, become more frequent due to climate change.
B.Green aims to find ways to ensure the integration of green elements also in the new, denser neighbourhoods. New, multifunctional urban green infrastructure might, however, appear wilder than residents have previously been used to but as an opposite to carefully maintained lawns, wild urban greenery is vital for many species, such as pollinators. As a part of B.Green project, the City of Tallinn is building a 13,5 kilometres-long pollinator highway that will improve habitats for pollinators in the city. Urban meadows and bee borders are some of the local pilots carried out in Tallinn.
Read the full story in Finnish
Adapted from original story by Petja Partanen
Photos by Petja Partanen and Vesa Laitinen
