Integrating Urban Agriculture and Stormwater Management in a Circular Economy to Enhance Ecosystem Services: Connecting the Dots

Abstract

Due to the rapid urbanization in the context of the conventional linear economy, the vulnerability of the urban ecosystem to climate change has increased. As a result, connecting urban ecosystem services of different urban land uses is imperative for urban sustainability and resilience. In conventional land use planning, urban agriculture (UA) and urban stormwater management are treated as separate economic sectors with different-disconnected-ecosystem services. Furthermore, few studies have synthesized knowledge regarding the potential impacts of integration of UA and stormwater green infrastructures (GIs) on the quantity and quality of urban ecosystem services of both economic sectors. This study provides a detailed analysis of the imperative question—how should a city integrate the developments of both urban agriculture and stormwater green infrastructure to overcome barriers while enhancing the ecosystem services? To answer this question, we conducted an extensive literature review. The results show that integrating UA with GIs can enhance urban food production while protecting urban water quality. This paper provides an initial context and mechanisms for future researchers and city planners regarding the manner in which the synergies between UA and stormwater GIs can create greater value for the wellbeing of urban ecosystems and resilience in the circular economy.

Challenges to Promote Sustainability in Urban Agriculture Models: A Review

“…Giraud [45] argues that UA can contribute to the achievement of some Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), such as increasing universal access to renewable energy (SDG#7-"Affordable and Clean Energy"), addressing air pollution in urban areas (SDG#11-Sustainable Cities and Communities) [50], contribute to Climate Action (SDG #13) and support biodiversity (SDG #15-"Life on Land") [45]. Furthermore, Deksissa et al [51] argue that UA integration strategies and green rainwater harvesting infrastructure could help urban areas at local and global levels in exploring adaptation mechanisms to extreme climate change events. Likewise, Marçal et al [52] argue that in the city of Goiânia, UA plays the role of making the urban environment more resilient to the climate crisis by helping mitigate drought, floods, improve soil conservation, capturing carbon from the atmosphere and lowering local air temperature.…”

A Review of Nutrient Losses to Waters From Soil- and Ground-Based Urban Agriculture—More Nutrient Balances Than Measurements

“…In a "linear" urban economy, cities are seen as the place where large amounts of food are consumed and thus waste is created, and this is made possible by exploiting natural (and human) resources in a city's rural hinterlands (Wiskerke, 2015). In contrast, a circular economy approach aims to close material and substance loops, thereby reducing resource consumption, waste generation, and environmental impact, as well as increasing reuse of nutrients, energy, and water (Jurgilevich et al, 2016;Deksissa et al, 2021). A circular urban food system closes resource loops by using unavoidable organic waste streams from cities to safely support agricultural production.…”

“…] [UA] is perceived as agriculture practices within and around cities which compete for resources (land, water, energy, labor) that could also serve other purposes to satisfy the requirements of the urban population" (FAO, 2007, p. 1). At the same time, UA is viewed as a tool to fight food insecurity and the poverty that urbanization is causing (Tank, 2016) and increasingly for its potential to contribute to more circular urban food systems (Jurgilevich et al, 2016;Deksissa et al, 2021). Circular UA would mean that the inputs for growing crops are derived from reused or recycled urban waste streams.…”

Sustainable Urban Agriculture as Functional Hybrid Unit—Issues of Urban Resilience

“…This following paper focuses on the solutions rooted in the sustainable development concept and related to increasing the demand for agrarian areas which can supply cities with food [11,12]. Another point of focus refers to water management, including the issue of water re-use in the context of circular economy [13][14][15][16][17]. Both issues are closely related to residents' needs in re-urbanized areas of a compact city, namely, to ensuring security, understood also as access to food, the formation of shared green spaces, and social life development.…”