Big pool, little pool: a landscaping environmental rehabilitation project in Jaguaré creek watershed, (SP)

• Grant number: 16/23837-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Start date: April 01, 2017
• End date: December 17, 2017
• Field of knowledge: Applied Social Sciences - Architecture and Town Planning - Landscaping
• Principal Investigator: Paulo Renato Mesquita Pellegrino
• Grantee: Carme Machí Castañer
• Supervisor: Brian Richard Davis
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo (FAU). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Cornell University, United States
• Associated to the scholarship: 15/05703-5 - Landscape project for water urban infrastructures. The Jaguare Creek, SP. SP, BP.DR

Abstract

The city of São Paulo is a clear case highlighting the damage of the transformation of a natural ecosystem into an urban area, where the original synergy between hydrological and biological functions was broken down. As a consequence, flooding and low quality in rivers and streams became a chronic problem, generally addressed by channeling and covering the waterbodies. These measures are known to be counter-productive regarding flood control, increasing the volumes downstream. This situation has paved the way for a new type of Urban Infrastructure, the Piscinão, equipment that stores the water excess from the peak flow until the evacuation system relieves. This infrastructure typically requires a large area devoted to a single purpose which has a negative impact for the liveness and wellness in the surrounding neighborhoods. Also, it requires significant maintenance for sediment removal every rain event. The goal of this project is to propose a redesign of these devices preserving their hydraulic function, but adding social, cultural and ecological values to make them more profitable and part of the public spaces. This project will be developed within the framework of the 'Joint Research Project: Big Pool, Little Pool', between the LabVerde from FAU - USP and the Department of Landscape Architecture from the University Cornell. It will be investigated if the Green Infrastructure Technologies (GIT) integrated in existing hydraulic infrastructures, can contribute significantly to the Environmental Rehabilitation of the Jaguaré Creek's watershed. (AU)