The planning of green infrastructure using a three-level approach

Abstract

In recent years, global research in spatial planning has focused on the sustainable development of green infrastructure (GI) in order to reduce the consequences of urbanization processes on the ecological, socio-economic and visual quality of the environment. Problems with stormwater management, floods, storms and global warming in general are just some of the reasons why GI planning has gained popularity. According to other current strategies (EU Biodiversity Strategy, EU GI strategy, Green Deal initiatives, etc.), GI plans, which include social, economic and ecological aspects, are being developed for territories of different scales. Until recently, green infrastructure was just an added value to real estate, but today it plays a completely different, much more important role. In Europe, the GI planning process has already begun, with several European countries developing GI plans in urban environment, different scales across country and even at national level.
Depending on the scale chosen, the principles of GI planning differ. In European examples, GI is considered in large-scale regional landscapes, where the green network and connections are formed from natural areas, but at the urban scale, the creation of GI goes hand in hand with the creation of a green network in the city, connecting the largest green areas with each other (squares, parks, urban forests, etc.). However, in the scientific literature, the basic principles and the correlation of GI planning at different scales have not been widely studied and analyzed. Therefore, the purpose of the article is to define the main principles in the planning of GI in Latvia using a three-level approach. Each level corresponds to a specific scale of the territory, starting with the regional scale, moving to rural and urbanized areas and concluding with the site scale. Each lower level is subordinated to the highest, thus forming a single GI planning system. At each level, GI key planning principles and prerequisites to be considered are defined.
The town of Aizpute, its neighboring villages and rural areas in Latvia were chosen as a case study territory for the article. Article discusses the planning of GI in the context of three levels and also the different approaches of GI planning in the rural and urban landscape.