Buddies Webinar #7: NBS for circular water systems

The 7th UNaLab Buddy System webinar was dedicated to circular water systems, water retention and reuse. It was a public event and included two main contributions:

Reuse and in-situ treatment of grey waters

Fabio Masi, Ph.D. Env.Sci., Environmental Chemist Technical Director - R&D Manager, IRIDRA Srl 

• Insights into successful case studies, such as the installations in the Serengeti National Park (Tanzania) and Beach Resort Marina of Ragusa (Italy).

Rainparks – landscape for rainwater management

Andrea Balestrini, Landscape Planner – Head of LAND research Lab, LAND

• Brief overview of water sensitive design principles with a focus on specific case studies, such as the Rainpark in Paderno Dugnano (Milan) and the Infiltration Park in Arcore (Monza Brianza).

During the webinar, a range of topics were explored thanks to the contributions of the speakers and the fruitful exchange of questions and answers with the participants. The main points of discussion were:

• global strategies related to the water cycle in the UN Sustainable Development Goals and the green-blue infrastructure approach in the EU Adaptation Strategy
• smart circular city of the future
• NBS used for water treatment and integration of water supply, recycling and harvesting grey waters, such as roof installations and green walls
• problems related to salts and chemicals in the grey waters for watering plants
• main challenges and barriers towards the implementation of NBS in cities' masterplans
• water sensitive and adpative design
• selection criteria for the choice of location when designing rainparks in cities
• tips and suggestions for the successful design and installation of NBS in cities

You can find the webinar video recording here.