Plan de acción territorial para la implantación de infraestructura verde en la ciudad de Cuenca

Abstract

In recent years, Cuenca city has experienced accelerated and expansive growth in its periphery. To achieve a sustainable urban planning, it is necessary to plan and control these areas that although it is not within the urban boundary it maintains a strong relationship with the city. This development and urban growth has caused a complete transformation of the natural environment, impacting directly on topography, vegetation, climate and hydrology. This sharp but deep change in the environment affects the native species that are deprived of their natural habitat.

A fundamental part of Cuenca city is its green areas. Not least important are squares, tree-lined streets, vacant lots, ravines, slopes, gardens, cemeteries and other spaces that house biotic components. All of them as a whole, significantly reduce the impact of urban areas and allow corridors suitable for the movement of various species through the urban fabric.

The proposed "Territorial Action Plan for the Implementation of the Urban Green Infrastructure System in Cuenca city" aims to offer solutions to environmental, social and economic problems, through a retrospective from the global to the local, identifying similarities, differences, limitations and potentialities.

This initiative proposes a menu of concrete solutions to urban problems such as mobility and the lack of quality public spaces, while providing solutions to environmental problems such as storm water infiltration, biological corridor connection, carbon sequestration, climate regulation and the loss of biodiversity in the city.

The proposal is based on the strategic location of multifunctional and interconnected spaces to create a network of green infrastructures aimed at improving accessibility to urban nature, open spaces, non-motorized transport and in general infrastructures that put into perspective the desired environment continuity for a developing city such as Cuenca.

By locating the urban centers, nodes, reserve areas, main facilities and services of the city, a city proposal based on life quality and equity is built. A city in which priority is given to spaces such as social meeting points in pleasant environments, where community participation and social cohesion are fundamental part in the dynamics and development of the city.