Our civilization is facing increased populations and scarcity of habitat for a variety of species. Encroaching on these landscapes while engaging in habitat fragmentation and destruction, has negatively impacted biodiversity and subsequently put thousands of species at risk of going extinct. With humans causing peril for various species via habitat losses and degradation due to our developing of landscapes, as Landscape Architects, we have a responsibility to minimize, negate, or rectify these losses and while still providing serviceable landscapes for our fellow humans. One possible avenue to pursue when motives for the well being of the collective are being considered is designing landscapes that serve both human and species in unison, with services being provided for humans and satisfying the needs of wildlife. This project is based on a desire to accommodate the needs of a growing community by providing a stormwater retainment system serving as a pedestrian artery to a historic river, while also accommodating the needs of wildlife by establishing a constructed meadow that satisfies habitat requirements for the Eastern Meadowlark. Through analysis of storm water volumes, building code setbacks regarding waterways, habitat requirements of the Eastern Meadowlark and land volume manipulation, a solution to many obstacles facing community and species has been posited in this project: the Dianna Dayle River Walk. / Master of Landscape Architecture / Our civilization is facing increased populations and scarcity of habitat for a variety of species. Encroaching on these landscapes while engaging in habitat fragmentation and destruction, has negatively impacted biodiversity and subsequently put thousands of species at risk of going extinct. With humans causing peril for various species via habitat losses and degradation due to our developing of landscapes, as Landscape Architects, we have a responsibility to minimize, negate, or rectify these losses and while still providing serviceable landscapes for our fellow humans. One possible avenue to pursue when motives for the well being of the collective are being considered is designing landscapes that serve both human and species in unison, with services being provided for humans and satisfying the needs of wildlife. This project is based on a desire to accommodate the needs of a growing community by providing a stormwater retainment system serving as a pedestrian artery to a historic river, while also accommodating the needs of wildlife by establishing a constructed meadow that satisfies habitat requirements for the Eastern Meadowlark. Through analysis of stormwater volumes, building code setbacks regarding waterways, habitat requirements of the Eastern Meadowlark and land volume manipulation, a solution to many obstacles facing community and species has been posited in this project: the Dianna Dayle River Walk.

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Den rådande biodiversitetskrisen hotar de ekosystemtjänster som mänskligheten är beroende av och behovet av naturvård är därför stort. Försoningsekologi är en alternativ naturvårdsstrategi som syftar till att modifiera antropogena miljöer så de kan nyttjas av både människan och en mångfald av andra arter. Strategin är särskilt relevant i städer eftersom traditionell naturvård, i form av reservering och restaurering, ofta är svårtillämpad där. Mot den bakgrunden syftar den här litteraturöversikten till att undersöka effektiviteten av urban försoningsekologi som naturvårdsstrategi. För att uppfylla syftet sammanställdes studier som undersökt hur olika försoningsekologiska åtgärder kan påverka biodiversiteten i urbana miljöer. Litteraturgenomgången visar att alla analyserade åtgärder, inklusive modifierade grönområden, gröna korridorer, anlagda våtmarker och dammar, vegeterade byggnader, utfodring, holkar och insektshotell kan främja biodiversiteten och erbjuda habitat för särskilt skyddsvärda arter i städer. Interventioner som skapar stora, sammankopplade, skyddade, varierade och lågintensivt skötta habitat med en mångfald av inhemska växtarter har visat sig vara särskilt effektiva. Diversiteten är dock ofta lägre, och artkompositionen annorlunda, jämfört med habitatens naturliga motsvarighet. Dessutom finns det en risk att åtgärderna skapar ekologiska fällor, sprider invasiva arter och bidrar till biotisk homogenisering. Metoden får därför inte legitimera minskade investeringar i traditionell naturvård. Samtidigt har strategiskt utformad försoningsekologi potential att utgöra ett viktigt komplement som utöver naturvård dessutom kan fylla många andra funktioner i urbana miljöer. Det är därför angeläget med fortsatt forskning, engagemang och samarbete för utvecklingen av effektiva försoningsekologiska naturvårdsåtgärder som kan bromsa förlusten av biologisk mångfald i städer och bidra till en hållbar utveckling.

Traditionally New Zealand ecological research has focused on nature outside of cities, however, as with global trends, there is now more interest being given to the ecological functioning of cities and the potential they may hold for protecting native biodiversity. Traditionally, efforts to maintain biodiversity in urban areas have been restricted to remnants of native vegetation and restoration activities. Little attention has been given to how native biodiversity could be woven into the urban fabric in an ecologically meaningful way. One option, that is receiving much attention overseas, is to recruit underutilised urban spaces such as wasteland. A subset of urban wasteland, abandoned industrial areas usually awaiting development and other areas such as the railway buffer, are referred to here as greyfield. These are ephemeral sites that may sit between uses for as little as a few months to many years. Overseas, particularly in European countries, these have been recognised as important habitat for both native and introduced plant species. In New Zealand cities these support primarily introduced plants and their contribution to native biodiversity has been unknown. This thesis took an interdisciplinary approach to the question of whether urban greyfields might have potential value as biodiversity protection and conservation opportunity. Ecological methods were combined with an assessment of the planning framework to answer this question. iii Greyfields in Christchurch, New Zealand were surveyed to determine their current contribution to native biodiversity and whether they may act as urban analogues of natural habitats. Overseas research has shown that urban features such as pavements, walls and rooftops offer habitats analogous to cliffs and rocky habitats. Cities are therefore increasing the habitat exploitable by species whose natural habitats are geographically restricted. The Christchurch greyfields were assessed for their potential to act as analogues of four habitat types that have been categorised as historically rare in New Zealand: braided riverbeds, shingle beaches, rock outcrops and limestone outcrops. The findings suggest that urban greyfields, if managed appropriately, have the potential to support a wider range of native species Planning documents and biodiversity strategies written for Christchurch were assessed to see how well they facilitated non-traditional biodiversity enhancement initiatives, specifically the greyfield network for native biodiversity. A major finding here was a lack of information on how to enhance biodiversity where little of the natural features of the landscape were left and that this was creating a barrier to adopting more integrative approaches to enhancing native biodiversity. Finally, a plan to create a greyfield network for native biodiversity is proposed and suggestions are made as to minor changes to the planning framework that would more easily facilitate the uptake of novel biodiversity enhancement initiatives in the City.