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When urbanization occurs, the removal of vegetation, compaction of soil and construction of impervious surfaces—roofs, asphalt, and concrete—and drainage infrastructure result in drastic changes to the natural hydrological cycle. Stormwater runoff occurs when rain does not infiltrate into soil. Instead it ponds at the surface and forms shallow channels of overland flow. The result is increased peak flows and pollutant loads, eroded streambanks, and decreased biodiversity in aquatic habitat. In urban areas, runoff is typically directed into catch basins and underground pipe systems to prevent flooding, however such systems are also failing to meet modern environmental goals. Green infrastructure is the widely evocative idea that development practices and stormwater management infrastructure can do better to mimic the natural hydrological conditions through distributed vegetation and source control measures that prevent runoff from being produced in the first place. This dissertation uses statistics and high-resolution, coupled surfacesubsurface hydrologic simulation (ParFlow.CLM) to examine three understudied aspects of green infrastructure planning. First, I examine how development characteristics affect the runoff response in urban catchments. I find that instead of focusing on site imperviousness, planners should aim to preserve the ecosystem functions of infiltration and evapotranspiration that are lost even with low density development. Second, I look at how the spatial configuration of green infrastructure at the neighborhood scale affects runoff generation. While spatial configuration of green infrastructure does result in statistically significant differences in performance, such differences are not likely to be detectable above noise levels present in empirical monitoring data. In this study, there was no evidence of reduced hydrological effectiveness for green infrastructure located at sag points in the topography. Lastly, using six years of empirical data from a voluntary residential green infrastructure program, I show how the spread of green infrastructure depends on the demographic and physical characteristics of neighborhoods as well as spatially-dependent social processes (such as the spread of information). This dissertation advances the science of green infrastructure planning at multiple scales and in multiple sectors to improve the practice of urban water resource management and sustainable development. / Doctor of Philosophy in City and Regional Planning

This study analyzes the quantifiable impacts of low impact development features, sometimes referred to as green infrastructure, across three alternative proposals for the development of a city district along the edge of a lake and a creek. Low impact development is defined as a stormwater management approach designed to capture water before it goes into stormwater drains or directly into bodies of water in order to allow the water to infiltrate groundwater sources or evapotranspirtate back into the atmosphere. The study applies Carl Steinitz’s Framework for GeoDesign to the three alternative proposals and the existing conditions as a means of comparison in order to understand an informed decision based approach to design. / text

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There is an abundance of ready-made tools for assessing the economic value of green infrastructure. Each with more or less unique design components and method approaches concerning quantifying and monetizing green infrastructure. Use of a single ready-made tool to support decisions and justify funding of inclusion of multifunctional green infrastructure in urban development may, due to different tools’ various designs and method approaches, risk excluding acknowledgement of relevant ecosystem services. This literature study embodies the logic of comparison by using content analysis method to explore possibilities of producing more comprehensive economic assessments of green infrastructure. This through contrasting content and design features of two such tools: Benefits Estimation Tool, and Green Infrastructure Valuation Toolkit. In addition, it analyses and discusses potential problems and opportunities that may arise when complementing tool A with methods or design features from tool B, and vice versa. Findings suggest that some few methods are similar enough not to constitute a complementary foundation between the tools, but that a combined use of some specific quantification and valuation methods may increase an assessments’ comprehensiveness. Findings also suggest that in combining the tools’ methods inaccuracy and uncertainty of an assessment are likely to increase. The study discusses tool-related problems regarding uncertainty, assessment of social benefits, and perception of value. It concludes that even though mutual complementarity is possible to achieve and in doing so more aspects of GI will be addressed, combining valuation tools in the pursuit of increased assessment comprehensiveness will likely generate problems in terms of assessment inaccuracy. The study may provide aid for developers of green infrastructure valuation tools and for practitioners conducting economic green infrastructure assessments or cost-benefit analyses. / Det finns en uppsjö färdigdesignade verktyg syftade till att bedöma det ekonomiska värdet av grön infrastruktur. Varje med mer eller mindre unika designkomponenter och metodsammansättningar gällande kvantifiering och värdeuppskattning av grön infrastruktur. Användandet av enbart ett sådant verktyg för att skapa beslutsgrund och rättfärdiga investering för multifunktionell grön infrastruktur i en stadsmiljö kan, på grund av olika verktygs varierande design och metodsammansättningar, riskera utesluta relevanta ekosystemtjänster. Den här litteraturstudien tar avstamp i en så kallad jämförande logik genom att använda den vetenskapliga metoden innehållsanalys för att undersöka möjligheterna att skapa mer omfattande ekonomisk bedömning av grön infrastruktur. Detta genom att kontrastera innehåll och design av två sådana verktyg: Benefits Esitmation Tool och Green Infrastructure Valuation Toolkit. Dessutom analyserar och diskuterar studien potentiella problem och möjligheter som kan uppstå när verktyg A kompletteras med metoder eller designkomponenter från verktyg B, eller vice versa. Undersökningsresultaten antyder att mellan de två verktygen är vissa metoder så lika att ingen komplimenterande grund kan utrönas, men att ett kombinerat användande av några specifika kvantifierings- och värdeuppskattningsmetoder kan öka omfattningen av en ekonomisk bedömning av grön infrastrukturs värde. Resultaten antyder också att genom att öka omfattningen av den sådan bedömning brister bedömningens precision och rimligen ökar även dess osäkerhet gällande uttryck av ekonomiskt värde. Studien diskuterar verktygsrelaterade problem gällande osäkerhet, bedömning av sociala fördelar, och förnimmelse av värde. Den drar slutsatsen att ömsesidig komplettering av verktygen och flertalet nya aspekter av grön infrastruktur till trots är det sannolikt att ett kompletterande av verktyg skapar problem gällande bedömningens precision. Studien kan bistå med hjälp till utvecklare av bedömningsverktyg för grön infrastruktur och för tjänstemän som genomför en ekonomisk bedömning eller lönsamhetsanalys av gröninfrastruktur.

Although urban green infrastructure [UGI] is increasingly characterized as an asset because it simultaneously serves critical social and environmental functions, few planning tools or research approaches exist where multiple functions are integrated into a systemic spatial analysis. Accordingly, this report examines the utility of ergonomics as a methodological approach to integrate the natural and social sciences and forge a deeper understanding of UGI multifunctionality. Five administrative districts in Dresden [Germany] were selected as a study area to carry out this analysis. Mixed methods were used to categorize and measure various social and environmental functions of UGI cases, and outcomes analyzed for spatial clustering in GIS. Results from this study provide strong evidence that combining social and environmental variables can significantly inform the way UGI networks are perceived and valued. / text

The State of Illinois and Federal government have designated one of three major rail corridors bisecting Springfield, Illinois, to be retrofitted to accommodate future high-speed rail traffic. The three corridors that bisect the city are known as the 3rd Street, 10th Street, and 19th Street corridors, each running north to south through the central city area. The approved plan completely decommissions the 3rd Street Corridor while expanding the 10th Street corridor to serve rail traffic currently using both of these corridors. Traffic to run along the expanded 10th Street corridor will include Amtrak's high-speed rail passenger service between St. Louis, Missouri, and Chicago, Illinois. The decommissioning of the 3rd Street Corridor in Springfield presents an opportunity for green infrastructure development in the form of a linear park. More broadly, this report argues that increasing quality of life amenities via the redevelopment of rail infrastructure provides a viable alternative economic development strategy for cities facing stagnant growth. / text

This research project explores the integration of the concept of urban green infrastructure (GI) into three “green plans” developed by four Winnipeg inner-city neighbourhoods. Through a literature review, “green plans” evaluation, key-informant interviews, and a focus group interview, many factors that influence on the urban green infrastructure planning in Winnipeg have been identified. These factors were synthesized with a SWOT-TOWS framework to identify strategies and measures to address situations that these inner-city neighbourhoods might face in the process of urban GI planning. Several conclusions have been drawn to summarize the research results, including: green infrastructure planning in the Winnipeg urban neighbourhood context will be taking different physical forms in terms of network connection, which will have great impact on the GI benefits, GI planning principles and processes, and planning practices in those Winnipeg inner-city neighbourhoods; the “green plans” of the four Winnipeg inner-city neighbourhoods provide valuable lessons for preparing for future urban GI planning; and incorporating urban green infrastructure into current neighbourhood “green plans” will face various opportunities and challenges. Combined with some internal factors, these opportunities and challenges put GI planning in different situations, each of which needs their own strategies and measures.

A critical dimension of the search for sustainable urban form is the need to accommodate urban population growth whilst at the same time ensuring the integrity of natural systems. Incorporating Green Infrastructure (GI) planning into the process of Urban Regeneration (UR) potentially offers a new way of addressing the challenges of sustainable urban development. However, despite the potential benefits of improved forms of integration, an effective understanding of the role of GI within UR is lacking. It is arguable that this awareness is particularly limited within the context of East Asian cities. This research explores the extent to which GI and UR are inter-related and are capable of offering joint sustainable development solutions. Through an evaluation of Taipei’s old urban core, this thesis assesses the potential for integration within the context of a rapidly evolving and highly dense urban setting. From a review of best practice examples, the thesis considers the manner in which GI and UR integration can be conceptualised. A model is proposed which is centred around process-product cycles and the presence of linked components. These linkages are then investigated through the review of existing planning policy, the level of current spatial integration and finally, the attitudinal perspectives of primary stakeholders. Three main challenges to integration are identified by the research. These are: the contextual difficulty of achieving sustainable urban form within a highly populated and socio-economically disadvantaged area; the institutional weighting awarded UR over GI within key organisations; and finally, the belief that GI provision cannot be reconciled with the need to pursue profit. In response, recommendations are proposed which include an improved strategic role for GI in UR; the development of tailored urban design regulations; a commitment to the development of a GI plan and the development of a better understanding of potential benefits.

A typology of urban vacant land was developed using Roanoke, Virginia, as the study area. Because of its industrial past, topography and climate, Roanoke provides a range of vacant land types typical of those in many areas of the Mid-Atlantic, Eastern and Midwestern United States. A comprehensive literature review, field measurements and observations analysis and aerial photo interpretation and ground-truthing methods were utilized to identify and catalog vacant parcels of land and the results were mapped using i-Tree Canopy to identify the following types of urban vacant land: post-industrial (3.34 km2), derelict (4.01 km2), unattended with vegetation (17.3 km2), natural (2.78 km2), and transportation-related (5.01 km2). Unattended with vegetation sites are important resources as the health biodiversity found in natural sites benefits urban populations and they represent the highest plantable space. The redesign of post-industrial sites builds a city's image and transportation-related sites can contribute a green infrastructure network of open spaces. This typological study has significant implications for policy development, and for planners and designers seeking the best use for vacant urban land. The analysis of Roanoke's urban forest revealed around 210,000 trees on vacant land, a tree cover of 30.6%. These trees store about 107,000 tons of carbon (worth $7.65 million) and remove about 2,300 tons of carbon ($164,000), and about 91 tons of air pollution ($916,000) every year, which is high relative to other land uses. Trees on vacant land are estimated to reduce annual residential energy costs by $211,000 for the city's 97,000 residents and their structural value is estimated at $169 million. The methodology applied to assess ecosystem services in this study can also be used to assess ecosystem services of vacant land in other urban contexts and improve urban forest policies, planning, and the management of vacant land. The study findings support the inclusion of trees on vacant land providing a new vision of vacant urban land as a valuable ecological resource by demonstrating how green infrastructure can be used to enhance ecosystem health and promote a better quality of life for city residents. / Ph. D.