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Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Urban and Rural Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 September 2021) | Viewed by 13053

Special Issue Editor

Institute of Social and Economic Geography and Spatial Management, University of Silesia in Katowice, 40-007 Katowice, Poland
Interests: urban geography; spatial management; economic geography; geography of settlement
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In many cities and rural settlements, brownfields account for a significant proportion of the territory. In many others they may not occupy a large area, but due to their specific nature, they are an important element of urban planning and urban policy. In this context, sustainability with respect to brownfields is an important issue globally. To clarify, we are interested not only in brownfields in the narrow sense of postindustrial areas. This broad concept should also cover postmining and postindustrial blackfield areas which are contaminated and require decontamination. In addition, we are interested in greyfields, which are particularly significant in urban policy. This term has evolved in recent years, but we assume that these are postservice and postresidential areas. This typology also counts abandoned agricultural areas and facilities as greenfields. Regardless of the proposed distinction between brownfields (in the very broad sense of the word) and greyfields, in practice, these areas are derelict from an economic, social, and planning point of view. This is a problem but also a challenge for the future sustainable development of cities and rural/agricultural areas. The challenges that brownfields pose for sustainable development policy as well as the changing and varied possibilities of adapting them to the needs of local communities are a key objective for this Special Issue of Sustainability, “Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural Systems”.

More specifically, this Special Issue focuses on the following topics and problems:

- The role of brownfields in urban and rural areas

- Endogenous and exogenous drivers in the formation of brownfields and sustainable models and development

- Policy and politics regarding the sustainable development of brownfields

- Tools and good practices in the sustainable development of brownfields

- Developing brownfields for local communities or for nature

- Social responsibility for the sustainable development of brownfields

- Directions of brownfield transformation on a local and regional scale

- Role and possibilities offered by GIS in brownfields research

- “Postindustrial” and “postmining” forests: an opportunity or a problem for sustainable urban development?

- Brownfields: a problem or an attractive economic and tourist space?

Prof. Dr. Robert Krzysztofik
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • brownfield regeneration
  • brownfield development
  • derelict areas
  • sustainable spatial changes
  • postindustrial areas

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 5399 KiB  
Article
Design and Verification of a Simple Approach to Brownfields Categorization
by Barbara Vojvodíková, Radim Fojtík and Iva Tichá
Sustainability 2021, 13(20), 11206; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su132011206 - 11 Oct 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1625
Abstract
Brownfields have been the subject of research, evaluation, categorization and, of course, redevelopment for many years. The ABC(D) model (an assessment tool to identify different types of sites in terms of their potential) by the Concerted Action on Brownfield and Economic Regeneration Network [...] Read more.
Brownfields have been the subject of research, evaluation, categorization and, of course, redevelopment for many years. The ABC(D) model (an assessment tool to identify different types of sites in terms of their potential) by the Concerted Action on Brownfield and Economic Regeneration Network (CABERNET) has been mentioned in many publications. The aim of the assessment method presented in this article is to use the basic essence of the categories in the ABC(D) model and to use our own very simple criteria. Our criteria are the result of many years of experience in the creation and management of the brownfield database. In 2017, the development potential of selected brownfields in the database of the Moravian-Silesian region (Czech Republic) was evaluated using our proposed procedure (three objective and one subjective criterion). In 2020, verification of the categories in regard to how correctly or incorrectly they were proposed was carried out. The results from this verification, including reasons for the accompanying inaccuracies, are a part of this article. We verified that the very simple evaluation procedure we proposed is functional and can be applied by database administrators continuously without the need to create complex datasets and statistical evaluations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System)
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25 pages, 4977 KiB  
Article
The Future of Post-Industrial Landscapes in East Lisbon: The Braço de Prata Neighbourhood
by Eser Yagci and Fernando Nunes da Silva
Sustainability 2021, 13(8), 4461; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13084461 - 16 Apr 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2316
Abstract
East Lisbon is being exposed to large-scale urban regeneration processes, where luxury residential projects and mixed-use spatial developments are already underway. Thus, it is a living laboratory for “smart”, “creative” and “green” projects, as well as related urban public space interventions. Braço de [...] Read more.
East Lisbon is being exposed to large-scale urban regeneration processes, where luxury residential projects and mixed-use spatial developments are already underway. Thus, it is a living laboratory for “smart”, “creative” and “green” projects, as well as related urban public space interventions. Braço de Prata is an urban space overlooked by developers, being surrounded by obsolete industrial buildings. Concerning the recent interest in international investments in brownfield regeneration and greenfield developments, it represents an attractive urban terrain as a post-industrial working-class neighbourhood, where “smart” and “green” suggest transforming space so that both new and old residents can live and work together and share public space regardless of analysis on their environmental recognitions. The aim of this paper is to present an empirical evaluation model that examines the possible impacts of environmental negligence through the reorganisation of the physical and social fabric. The analyses focus on dwellers’ moral understanding of their changing environment as site-specific domains to address the unique conditions that affect transiently defined presumptions about the collective needs. Taking an evaluative approach in the Braço de Prata case, this paper demonstrates the specific socio-ecological implications of urban inequality in post-industrial neighbourhoods that could be threatened by new decisions, both through urban planning approaches and instruments. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System)
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18 pages, 3489 KiB  
Article
Greening the Brownfields of Thermal Power Plants in Rural Areas, an Example from Romania, Set in the Context of Developments in the Industrialized Country of Germany
by Maria Bostenaru Dan and Magdalena Maria Bostenaru-Dan
Sustainability 2021, 13(7), 3800; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13073800 - 30 Mar 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2339
Abstract
This paper describes the greening of ash dumps from two thermal power plants located in Romania, in the villages of Mintia and Doicești, two rural areas neighboring middle-sized cities, both with architectural, archaeological and landscape heritage. Currently, the two Romanian villages have different [...] Read more.
This paper describes the greening of ash dumps from two thermal power plants located in Romania, in the villages of Mintia and Doicești, two rural areas neighboring middle-sized cities, both with architectural, archaeological and landscape heritage. Currently, the two Romanian villages have different fates in the context of shrinking cities, and solutions from the industrialized country of Germany that are more advanced in closing polluting thermal power plants are examples of this. Thus, the greening of industrial waste is one of the current challenges of the energy shift towards renewable energy. Nature-based solutions such as the proposed use of the biodegradable geo-textile in the greening is one of the current trends. The development of the biodegradable geo-textile was contemporary with the creation of the International Building Exhibition (Internationale Bauaaustellung—IBA) Emscher Park in the ancient industrial coal mining Ruhr area, in Germany; later research, around 10 years ago, explored soil pollution at these two Romanian thermal power plants. A recent research study investigated the conversion of the industrial buildings of the thermal power plant in Doicești, however, these buildings were demolished at the end of last year. Mintia thermal power plant continues to function. This paper explores the current challenges of industrial brownfields, energy shift, ecology, the 21st yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris and “Laudato si”, spanning 30 years of history and the legacy of the research over this time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System)
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24 pages, 1768 KiB  
Article
Transformation Directions of Brownfields: The Case of the Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowska Metropolis
by Sławomir Pytel, Sławomir Sitek, Marta Chmielewska, Elżbieta Zuzańska-Żyśko, Anna Runge and Julita Markiewicz-Patkowska
Sustainability 2021, 13(4), 2075; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su13042075 - 15 Feb 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 2489
Abstract
Brownfields are remnants of the functional and spatial transformations of urban areas in Poland. They are particularly abundant in old industrial districts, based on coal mining and metallurgy. The aim of this study is to identify the transformation directions and functional changes of [...] Read more.
Brownfields are remnants of the functional and spatial transformations of urban areas in Poland. They are particularly abundant in old industrial districts, based on coal mining and metallurgy. The aim of this study is to identify the transformation directions and functional changes of brownfields in the former Upper Silesian Industrial Region in southern Poland, which has evolved into the Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowska Metropolis (GZM) through the process of socio-economic transformation. The study makes use of the χ2 test of independence and Cramer’s V as a post-test, and the method of in-depth interviews. The results indicate that the most popular new functions of post-industrial sites are production and services. When we consider large brownfields such as, in particular, disused mine dumps, dumping sites, settling ponds and workings, the most popular new form of land use is green spaces. Moreover, the study shows that the size of brownfields impacts their new forms of land use. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System)
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28 pages, 6402 KiB  
Article
Transforming Brownfields as Tourism Destinations and Their Sustainability on the Example of Slovakia
by Bohuslava Gregorová, Pavel Hronček, Dana Tometzová, Mário Molokáč and Vladimír Čech
Sustainability 2020, 12(24), 10569; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/su122410569 - 17 Dec 2020
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3390
Abstract
This study analyzes the issue of mining brownfields (sites abandoned after the extraction of minerals) in terms of their secondary use after revitalization as potential new sites of mining tourism. In the first part of the paper, we deal with the theoretical basis [...] Read more.
This study analyzes the issue of mining brownfields (sites abandoned after the extraction of minerals) in terms of their secondary use after revitalization as potential new sites of mining tourism. In the first part of the paper, we deal with the theoretical basis of the study, the conceptualization of mining brownfields, possibilities for their revitalization, and their sustainability for mining tourism. In the second part, we analyze mining brownfields as devastated mining sites using a questionnaire survey conducted among students of geotourism and geography at three Slovak universities in Košice, Banská Bystrica, and Prešov. The result of our several years of field research was a database of mining brownfields in Slovakia. According to our findings and the latest theoretical and methodological literature about other types of brownfields, we compiled a comprehensive definition of mining brownfields. The questionnaire survey confirmed that mining brownfields are interesting destinations for (mining) tourism with long-term sustainability. The equipment of the services did not directly determine the number of visitors, who did not perceive the risk and danger of visiting mining brownfields. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Brownfields in Sustainable Urban and Rural System)
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