Nature-based solutions for pollution control, such as constructed wetlands, biofilters, rain gardens and floating parks, among others, have been suggested as promising low-cost complements to centralised wastewater treatment facilities that could reduce water pollution and its negative impacts on ecosystems while making cities greener, more livable and resilient. Over the past decades, decentralised wastewater treatment systems, including elements of NBS have been increasingly promoted across remote communities in developing countries in Asia. However, applications of NBS as multi-functional green infrastructure across cities in the region are scarce. This workshop aims to explore and understand the potential and barriers to integrating NBS in urban water management and planning in Australia, Europe, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam and to co-develop a methodology and guidelines for enhancing their uptake.
The workshop presents the experiences of NBS pilot and demonstration projects across Australia, Europe, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam and two in-depth case studies to understand their performance but also critical challenges and factors of success. Projects initiated and led by different types of organisations, namely universities, NGOs and government agencies and NBS employed to treat different kinds of urban water (domestic, industrial, stormwater, canals, etc.) will be explored and compared as a basis for defining different pathways for the establishment, up-scaling and replication of such initiatives and the specific risks, resources and capacity building needs associating with each of them. A joint integrated assessment methodology will also be presented to ensure the comparability of the collected data and results. The findings from the case study assessments will inform the design of a nature-based water treatment pathways methodology and guide.
The APN National Workshop 2023 will contribute to compiling and synthesising existing knowledge and developing and testing an action-research methodology for engaging multi-disciplinary groups of stakeholders in designing and implementing nature-based water treatment solutions in urban contexts. As such, it will play an important role in enhancing both the knowledge and the capacities of the participating researchers to analyse and address critical sustainability challenges that require the engagement of different factors.
