Prague’s 2016 Climate Change Adaptation Strategy includes the coordinated development of the city’s periurban landscape to ensure the protection and development of natural areas. It also includes the implementation of climate adaptation measures, including the strengthening of flood protection, the slowing of surface water runoff, ensuring integrated floodplain revitalization, changing the form of periurban agriculture, and increasing solar radiation absorption. These objectives can be met through a periurban park management tool that sets out an overall vision while also including specific measures to improve the condition and management of the periurban landscape.
IPR Prague has received funding from the Norway Grants "Bergen" program for the Periurban Park as a Tool for Adaptation to Climate Change project. This initiative will contribute to the planning of the Soutok (Confluence) Periurban Park, which will be the first of its kind in the Czech Republic.
The aim of the Periurban Park as a Tool for Adaptation to Climate Change project is to support the establishment of the Soutok (Confluence) Periurban Park – a pilot project for the river floodplain area at the confluence of the Berounka and Vltava Rivers. The park will ensure sustainable and sensitive development of the area as well as its holistic management, and will enable it to become part of the multifunctional green infrastructure system of Prague and the Central Bohemian Region. The target group of the project are the citizens of Prague and the Central Bohemian Region, who will benefit from the increased long-term resilience of the area to climate change.
Milestone: public presentation of the results of the competition and announcement of the winner of the follow-on contract
Milestone: public presentation of the outputs of the follow-on contract
The planned outputs of the project are specific studies and conceptual documents that will serve for the necessary revitalization, development, and coordination of park management. These documents will be part of the backbone document – the guide plan for the development of the Soutok area.
This output includes a specific landscape design for the revitalization of the area along the watercourses and the surrounding area. It will address the backbone of the landscape and will apply measures for the enhancement of ecosystem services, the development of blue-green infrastructure, and the application of the principles of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS).
Provide a long-term plan for the sustainable development of the area – embedding the vision, identification of themes, framework and principles for the implementation of plans and projects in the area. It addresses the wider relationships and respects the principle of balanced development of the area in ecological, economic and cultural and social terms. It will be a plan for the revitalization of the river floodplain with a horizon of 25 years.
The individual studies will ensure the coordination and landscape design of the current HMP investment projects in the respective locations. They will illustrate the detailed project approach to addressing issues, consider urban linkages, and propose solutions that will enhance the attractiveness of the area and initiate sensitive development of the suburban Soutok Park area. The studies of the following selected projects will be prepared: Entry point Černošice, Entry point Radotín, Restoration of the Berounka valley and Linking Zbraslav–Radotín.
The project fulfils the requirements of the first two chapters of the strategy, and includes the revitalization of floodplains and watercourses, the incorporation of climate adaptation into background studies, the revitalization of vegetation, and the strengthening of the ecological stability of the landscape and flood protection using NBS.
The project is in line with this concept's requirement for coordinated landscape management, enhancement of ecosystem services, improvement of the permeability and recreational function of the landscape, and landscape development based on a shared vision of stakeholders.
The project fulfils area 1.4-A of the Strategic Plan, creating a functional green infrastructure system and ensuring the unified management of this natural area.
The area spans five Prague municipalities (Zbraslav, Lipence, Velká Chuchle, Prague 12 and Prague 16) and five municipalities of the Central Bohemian Region (Černošice, Dobřichovice, Lety, Řevnice and Všenory).
The project will directly affect 102,000 people in the area, and indirectly impact all of Prague’s inhabitants.
Due to a lack of experience with periurban parks in the Czech Republic, IPR Prague has entered into a partnership agreement with the Oslo School of Architecture and Design (AHO) in Norway, and the EUROPARC federation. Representatives from these institutions will participate in the preparation and evaluation of the competition and will provide consultation during the processing of the subsequent contract.
AHO, Oslo, Norway: Karin Helms
EUROPARC: T. Pastor and Carol Ritchie
The project is funded by the EEA and Norway Grants 2014–2021, CZ-ENVIRONMENT program.
See more at: www.sfzp.cz/norskefondy, www.norskefondy.cz, www.eeagrants.org.
Contact: Ing. arch. Zdeněk Ent, IPR Prague, ent@ipr.praha.eu, tel. +420 777 861 720.
