(re)Carbon City

Abstract

As the climate is changing, the need to mitigate and adapt to the climate is getting more urgent every day. One of the biggest causes of global warming is the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide. Simultaneously, we are destroying one of our biggest carbon sinks; our peat soil. Peat soil in the Netherlands is destroyed by the Dutch polder system and the way the Dutch are building on top of the peat layer. This results in oxidation, which results in a release of carbon dioxide. Fortunately, there is a solution to preserving the peat soil and even regrowth. By rewetting the peat layer, the anaerobic conditions needed to maintain the peat are created. This calls for a different type of built environment in order to prevent the loss of our carbon sink. The study location of this project is Westergouwe in Gouda, which is designated for the building of housing and the soil contains our beloved peat soil. To still gratify the big housing need, a design is made of the neighborhood Westergouwe combining the urban environment with the goals of preserving and growing peat, in an ecologically responsible way. This project answers questions through literature research like: How can carbon be stored in the soil, vegetation, and in the urban environment? How can you build on peat soil without destroying it? And what is the urban ecosystem? Also, an analysis using mapping, expert interviews, and literature research is done of the polder system surrounding Westergouwe, of other environmental problems, and of suitable biotopes within this vision. After the design, is looked at how this design could be implemented in phases and which stakeholders would be involved. This type of design requires long-term planning. Throughout the process, the involvement of local and national governments is key to realizing this design. To transfer the knowledge maintained in this project, a pattern language is made and a method is abstracted. This project is not only applicable to Westergouwe, it could be relevant for a lot of places where peat is present in the soil. But not only that, because of the finiteness of the polder system, this type of design could be relevant for the whole of the western Netherlands. The author hopes that more research is done to continue the project’s search for a landscape-based urban environment that mitigates and adapts to the climate and that this project is used as a framework for further research.