IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v14y2022i8p4511-d790761.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Landscape Design for Flood Adaptation from 20 Years of Constructed Ecologies in China

Author

Listed:
  • Elisa Palazzo

    (Built Environment, UNSW, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia)

  • Sisi Wang

    (Centre of Urban Stormwater System and Water Environment, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Beijing 100044, China)

Abstract

In highly urbanized floodplains, it is becoming widely accepted that a change is needed to move away from flood control towards flood adaptation paradigms. To address riverine and flash flooding in urban areas, urban and landscape designers have developed design solutions that are able to increase urban ecological resilience by allocating space to fluctuating water levels. With the purpose of operationalizing flood resilience, this study explores how constructed ecology principles are applied to the design of multifunctional landscapes to restore floodplain functions in urban areas and prevent downstream flooding. The study adopts a design-by-research approach to examine 30 case studies from the Sponge Cities initiative realized in China in the last twenty years and develops a toolbox of Flood Adaptation Types for stormwater management. The results are aimed at informing operations in the planning and design professions by proposing a schematic design framework for flood adaptation in different geographic conditions, scales, and climates. The study sets up the bases for a systematic assessment of flood adaptation responses also by facilitating communication between disciplines, designers, and non-experts. This will enable evidence-based decisions in landscape architecture and urban design, as well as fulfill pedagogic purposes in higher education and research.

Suggested Citation

  • Elisa Palazzo & Sisi Wang, 2022. "Landscape Design for Flood Adaptation from 20 Years of Constructed Ecologies in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(8), pages 1-20, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:8:p:4511-:d:790761
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/8/4511/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/14/8/4511/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Elisa Palazzo, 2019. "From water sensitive to floodable: defining for water resilient cities," Journal of Urban Design, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(1), pages 137-157, January.
    2. Vassilios Tsihrintzis & Rizwan Hamid, 1997. "Modeling and Management of Urban Stormwater Runoff Quality: A Review," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 11(2), pages 136-164, April.
    3. Ifigenia Psarra & Özlem Altınkaya Genel & Alex van Spyk, 2021. "A Research by Design Strategy for Climate Adaptation Solutions: Implementation in the Low-Density, High Flood Risk Context of the Lake District, UK," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-23, October.
    4. Mick Lennon & Mark Scott & Eoin O'Neill, 2014. "Urban Design and Adapting to Flood Risk: The Role of Green Infrastructure," Journal of Urban Design, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(5), pages 745-758, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Melese Mulu Baylie & Csaba Fogarassy, 2022. "Decision Analysis of the Adaptation of Households to Extreme Floods Using an Extended Protection Motivation Framework—A Case Study from Ethiopia," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-20, October.
    2. Onur Aksoy & Kamil Erken & Eren Dağra Sökmen, 2025. "Application of Sponge City strategies in flood susceptible areas; Hatay, Antakya example," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 121(4), pages 4781-4801, March.
    3. Roberto Pizarro & Cristian Vidal-Silva & Dayana Jaque & Alfredo Ibáñez Córdova & Claudia Sangüesa & Cristóbal Toledo & Pablo A. Garcia-Chevesich, 2024. "Open-Source Design of Infiltration Trenches for Sustainable Soil and Water Conservation in Rural Areas of Central Chile," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-14, July.
    4. Elisa Palazzo, 2025. "Sponge Landscapes: Flood Adaptation Landscape Type Framework for Resilient Agriculture," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-19, October.
    5. Yuliang Jiang & Hadley Arnold, 2023. "Traditional Water Systems Informing Sustainable Contemporary Drylands Design: Documentation, Extraction, and Deployment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-20, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mattia Bertin & Eugenia Vincenti, 2024. "Eco-Zip: Climate-Proofing an International Logistic Hub," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-20, March.
    2. Vassilios A. Tsihrintzis, 2017. "The use of Vertical Flow Constructed Wetlands in Wastewater Treatment," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 31(10), pages 3245-3270, August.
    3. Azam Haidary & Bahman Amiri & Jan Adamowski & Nicola Fohrer & Kaneyuki Nakane, 2013. "Assessing the Impacts of Four Land Use Types on the Water Quality of Wetlands in Japan," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 27(7), pages 2217-2229, May.
    4. Vassilios Tsihrintzis & Hector Fuentes & Rao Gadipudi, 1997. "GIS-Aided Modeling of Nonpoint Source Pollution Impacts on Surface and Ground Waters," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 11(3), pages 207-218, June.
    5. An Liu & Dunzhu Li & Liang Liu & Yuntao Guan, 2014. "Understanding the Role of Urban Road Surface Characteristics in influencing Stormwater Quality," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(14), pages 5217-5229, November.
    6. V. M. Jayasooriya & A. W. M. Ng & S. Muthukumaran & B. J. C. Perera, 2016. "Optimal Sizing of Green Infrastructure Treatment Trains for Stormwater Management," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 30(14), pages 5407-5420, November.
    7. Fei Li & Xu-Feng Yan & Huan-Feng Duan, 2019. "Sustainable Design of Urban Stormwater Drainage Systems by Implementing Detention Tank and LID Measures for Flooding Risk Control and Water Quality Management," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 33(9), pages 3271-3288, July.
    8. Renato Monteiro & José C. Ferreira & Paula Antunes, 2020. "Green Infrastructure Planning Principles: An Integrated Literature Review," Land, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-19, December.
    9. Shradhda Suman Jnawali & Matthew McBroom & Yanli Zhang & Kevin Stafford & Zhengyi Wang & David Creech & Zhongqian Cheng, 2025. "Effectiveness of Rain Gardens for Managing Non-Point Source Pollution from Urban Surface Storm Water Runoff in Eastern Texas, USA," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(10), pages 1-23, May.
    10. Tahia Tasnia & Anna Growe, 2025. "A Systematic Literature Review of Water-Sensitive Urban Design and Flood Risk Management in Contexts of Strategic Urban Sustainability Planning," Land, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-24, January.
    11. Jiayang Li & Ziyi Guo, 2024. "Leveraging Greenspace to Manage Urban Flooding: An Investigation of Nature-Based Solutions Implementation in U.S. Public Parks," Land, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-22, September.
    12. Carlos Rey-Mahía & Luis A. Sañudo-Fontaneda & Valerio C. Andrés-Valeri & Felipe Pedro Álvarez-Rabanal & Stephen John Coupe & Jorge Roces-García, 2019. "Evaluating the Thermal Performance of Wet Swales Housing Ground Source Heat Pump Elements through Laboratory Modelling," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-13, June.
    13. Vidya Anderson & William A. Gough, 2021. "Harnessing the Four Horsemen of Climate Change: A Framework for Deep Resilience, Decarbonization, and Planetary Health in Ontario, Canada," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-19, January.
    14. Juan An & Fenli Zheng & Mathias Römkens & Guifang Li & Qingsen Yang & Leilei Wen & Bin Wang, 2013. "The role of soil surface water regimes and raindrop impact on hillslope soil erosion and nutrient losses," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 67(2), pages 411-430, June.
    15. Mariana Marchioni & Roberto Fedele & Anita Raimondi & John Sansalone & Gianfranco Becciu, 2022. "Permeable Asphalt Hydraulic Conductivity and Particulate Matter Separation With XRT," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 36(6), pages 1879-1895, April.
    16. Barah, Masoud & Khojandi, Anahita & Li, Xueping & Hathaway, Jon & Omitaomu, OluFemi, 2021. "Optimizing green infrastructure placement under precipitation uncertainty," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 100(C).
    17. Yi Chen & Tao Liu & Ruishan Chen & Mengke Zhao, 2020. "Influence of the Built Environment on Community Flood Resilience: Evidence from Nanjing City, China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(6), pages 1-16, March.
    18. Satyavati Shukla & Shirishkumar Gedam & M. V. Khire, 2020. "Implications of demographic changes and land transformations on surface water quality of rural and urban subbasins of Upper Bhima River basin, Maharashtra, India," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 129-171, January.
    19. Mokhtar Karami & Rasoul Sarvestan & Manfred Kleidorfer, 2025. "Forecasting and Simulation of Urban Floods Based on the Integration of RegCM and Stormwater Management Models," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 39(8), pages 3837-3857, June.
    20. Antonio Menéndez Suárez-Inclán & Cristina Allende-Prieto & Jorge Roces-García & Juan P. Rodríguez-Sánchez & Luis A. Sañudo-Fontaneda & Carlos Rey-Mahía & Felipe P. Álvarez-Rabanal, 2022. "Development of a Multicriteria Scheme for the Identification of Strategic Areas for SUDS Implementation: A Case Study from Gijón, Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(5), pages 1-20, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:14:y:2022:i:8:p:4511-:d:790761. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.