Regenerating urban brownfields
Contaminated land poses health and environmental risks. In a densely populated area like Europe, soil has become a scarce resource. Poor management, rubble, and soil and groundwater contamination of derelict land are a burden for the development in many European municipalities. Such urban brownfields should be seen as an opportunity to prevent sealing of fertile soils. Many tools for site clean-up and better management are available. But, they are often too diverse, don't consider regional or cultural specificities, or stakeholders simply don't know about them. TIMBRE was an EU-funded initiative to overcome these limitations by integrating new and existing regeneration technologies as well as management solutions and developing hands-on tools. Several online tools were created that give stakeholders access to the project results and tailored support measures. These include an information system, a prioritization tool and a site assessment tool for an efficient and sustainable re-use planning. Moreover, the project presents best practice cases of brownfield sites in Europe that have been regenerated. Together, these tools can assist managers of brownfield regeneration projects in planning, management and stakeholder engagement. The tools were tested in collaboration with stakeholders at a number of brownfield sites in the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and Romania. Applications of the tools demonstrated, TIMBRE offers useful instruments for brownfield regeneration projects. TIMBRE also investigated how different technologies for site characterization and remediation can be applied most efficiently, highlighting the use of plants to screen for contaminants in soil and groundwater in a process called phytoinvestigation. Finally, the project produced guides to make regeneration projects more eco-friendly and cost effective, as well as safer for all participants. By boosting the efficiency of brownfield regeneration, TIMBRE outcomes will help stimulate economic recovery, competitiveness and urban environmental management.
Keywords
Urban brownfields, industrial wastelands, soil, derelict land, contamination, brownfield regeneration
