re•flect is a research project that aims to visualise the strategic use of daylight in river restoration, letting stakeholders reimagine, co-design and reflect on restoration scenarios, helping rivers reflect again.
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Partners
Lead research institutes
Introduction
Imagine two streams: one in the city, hidden under roads in dark culverts, and another in the farmed countryside with fields running up to the stream edge. One stream is too dark, the other too light. Too little or too much daylight affects the water quality, water temperature, and stream biodiversity. Neither stream is particularly pleasing to look at.
Improving the light regime of these streams through restoration management can improve ecosystems and biodiversity, and the quality of life for people living in the area. But restoration is not simply environmental engineering – it's also about working constructively with people. The stakeholders affected by restoration projects often want very different things: Some worry about losing land or parking spaces, some care about wildlife, some want recreation and value a pleasant riverscape aesthetic. Yet others are concerned about how restoration might affect flooding.
In this project, we are developing and modelling visual scenarios for daylight management in ecological restoration of streams and rivers in Scotland and Switzerland. We develop new tools to show people how streams will look like after restoration in different contexts and over time. Such tools will enable everyone, from local residents to government officials, to better understand what restoration outcomes might look like given different decisions and management scenarios. Through an iterative engagement mediated by visualisation processes, we aim to foster more effective and participatory engagement on issues of river restoration and management to ensure that our streams and rivers are healthy and attractive.
Context of the study
When urban streams are buried:
Historically, there was no clear separation between natural streams and sewage systems in European cities. During industrialisation, many open waters have been placed in underground culverts for hygienic and aesthetic reasons.
This legacy now places a burden on cities, as clean and dirty water is mixed, and all needs to be treated as wastewater.
As there is no riverbed with vegetation, water in culverts moves more quickly and there's no connection to the underground cleaning zone, meaning that hidden streams can't clean themselves well.
Plants that depend on photosynthesis are not able to survive inside dark culverts. While certain fish and some small water creatures might occur in the shaded zones at the entrance or outlet of the channelized section, most species of animals avoid the inner parts, too.
When rural streams get too much daylight:
Riparian areas of European rivers are typically dominated by trees and woodlands. However, in many places, agriculture and human infrastructures are now extending all the way to the shore.
Many fish species require cool and clean water to thrive. Global warming and nutrient pollution are threatening these conditions. This gets worse, if too much sunlight further heats up the water.
Benefits of restoring optimal daylight
Daylight management through restoration of streams and riparian vegetation brings immediate benefits to biodiversity and human wellbeing. Restored areas provide heat mitigation, attractive habitat, and areas for recreation.
Environmental benefits include cooling effects from waterbodies, improved microbial processes (‘self-purification’), mitigation of streamflow and flooding as well as the creation of diverse habitat for biodiversity.
Benefits for human well-being include increased scenic beauty opportunities for recreation, opportunities for environmental educational and opportunities for children to play. Further, the sound of the flow of water masks city noise and provides a calming atmosphere.
Economic benefits include the reduced costs for wastewater treatment and climate change mitigation. Stream restoration can increase adjacent land values or rents, however, this also comes with the risk of displacing socially vulnerable residents who cannot afford increasing rents.
The challenge:
Restoration needs space for the establishment of vegetation and resources for long-term maintenance. Both in urban and agricultural landscapes, space is contested and the interests in how to use the limited available land diverge strongly. Consequently, the costs for restoring streams and rivers are high.
Our Goals
We will forward research on the ecological and social dimensions of daylight management in river restoration.
We will develop a new way of inclusive decision-making for river restoration, developing tools that allow working together across different people in new, exciting ways.
Supported by novel AI image generation tools, we will develop exciting, efficient and inclusive ways to develop visual scenarios.
We will test and implement such new tools in a collaborative way during ongoing decision-making processes in existing case studies.
Our Team
SCIENTIFIC LEAD
Professor, Planning for Biodiversity and Vegetation Development, the Institute of Environmental Planning, Leibniz Universität Hannover.
Research area: land system science, vegetation mapping and GIS analyses, urban ecology, green infrastructures, remote sensing with drones and satellite time series, ecosystem restoration, and integrated Landscape approaches
PROJECT LEAD
Full Professor, Ecosystem Management group, the Department of Environmental Sciences, ETH Zurich.
Board of NatureScot, the Scottis Government agency for biodiversity, conservation and restoration.
Research area: plant reproductive processes both in natural and human dominated environments, plant genetics, conservation and human livelihoods
POSTDOC SCIENTIST
Postdoc, Ecosystem Management group, the Department of Environmental Sciences, ETH Zurich.
Research area: landscape visualisation, landscape perception and preferences, ecosystem services, urban wetlands
CO-PI
Senior scientist, Institut für Umwelt- und Verfahrenstechnik (UMTEC), Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences (OST) .
Research area: planning multi-functional blue green systems (Infrastructure and Policy) in urban areas
CO-PI
Senior scientist, Economics and Social Sciences group, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL
Research area: social science research on landscape development, landscape services and natural hazards
PROJECT MANAGER
Senior scientist, Ecosystem Management group, the Department of Environmental Sciences, ETH Zurich.
Research area: developing and using dedicated tools to support stakeholders’ engagement such as agent-based models and role-playing games.
Study areas
City of Zurich, Switzerland
Work in partnership with the Bachteam, a specialized unit within the Entsorgung + Recycling - Stadt Zürich (ERZ).
Scotland, United Kingdom
Work in partnership with the Riverwood, a project led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust
Our Research Progress
We are currently exploring the capability of generative AI tools in visualising daylight management in rivers/streams.
Stay tuned for updates on the progress.
Illustration Generated by ChatGPT4 with DALL-E
The first attempt of the Prompt
a realistic drawing of a meandering stream with European vegetation next to a street in an urban environment.
Prompt modified by ChatGPT4 and used for image generation
A realistic drawing depicting a meandering stream with European vegetation, such as willows, oaks, and shrubs, flowing beside a street in an urban environment. The scene should showcase a juxtaposition of nature and urbanity, with buildings visible in the background. The focus is on the stream, with clear water and smooth stones visible beneath the surface. Alongside the stream, a narrow, cobblestone street winds through the scene, lined with quaint European-style lampposts and small, picturesque buildings typical of a European city. The atmosphere should be serene, with soft sunlight filtering through the trees, casting dappled shadows on the stream and street.
Inpaint with Automatic1111 WEB-UI (Stable Diffusion)
Get Involved
Upcoming Events
To be decided
Zürich, Switzerland
Workshops….