Title: Recovered phosphorus for a more resilient urban agriculture: Assessment of the fertilizer potential of struvite in hydroponics / Urban agriculture (UA) is a means for cities to become more resilient in terms of food sovereignty while shortening the distance between production and consumption. However, intensive soilless UA still depends on the use of fertilizers, which relies on depleting non-renewable resources.
Title: Exploring the Potential of Using Carbonyl Sulfide to Track the Urban Biosphere Signal / Cities are implementing additional urban green as a means to capture CO2 and become more carbon neutral. However, cities are complex systems where anthropogenic and natural components of the CO2 budget interact with each other, and the ability to measure the efficacy of such measures is still not properly addressed.
Title: Optimizing irrigation in urban agriculture for tomato crops in rooftop greenhouses / The rise of population in urban areas makes it ever more important to promote urban agriculture (UA) that is efficient in terms of water and nutrients. How to meet the irrigation demand of UA is of particular concern in urban areas where water sources are often limited.
Title: Incorporating user preferences in rooftop food-energy-water production through integrated sustainability assessment / We propose an integrated process that includes participatory processes and a multi-dimensional sustainability assessment of environmental, social and economic indicators.
The URBAG members worked on three presentations during the EGU 2021 conference, where 18 155 scientists from 136 different countries have met. With approximately 13 000 users per day, the conference has been considered a resounding success. The sessions have been conditioned by the global Covid-19 pandemic, forcing it to be carried out in virtual format.
Soilless crop production is a viable way to promote vertical agriculture in urban areas, but it relies extensively on the use of mineral fertilizer. The benefits of fresher, local food and avoiding the transportation and packaging associated with food import could be counteracted by an increase in nutrient-rich wastewater, which could contribute to freshwater and marine eutrophication.
The Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB) bares the potential to create more than 750 km. of Green Corridors: urban strips with high presence of vegetation that cross the urban fabric and link the different areas of the city, used mainly by pedestrians and cyclists.
In this study, we show the effectiveness of cool roofs and vegetation in reducing temperature in the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona (AMB). We use the Weather and Research Forecasting (WRF) model with the urban scheme BEP+BEM.
Last week children at Escola Mare de Déu de la Salut planted the first lettuces as part of a vertical farming school pilot project. Not only does the project provide education to the children but the vegetables will be consumed onsite in the school canteen.
Aquest dimecres 7 d'abril, la doctora Gara Villalba ha estat entrevistada al programa "En directe a Ràdio 4", coordinat per Josep Cabayol. L'efecte d'illa de calor ha estat el principal tema d'interès dels entrevistadors. Villalba ha explicat que l'efecte d'illa de calor pot provocar diferències de fins a 10°C a les nits d'hivern entre els nuclis urbans i la perifèria.
La dra Gara Villalba va participar el passat 17 de març en un debat a Vida Verda, de radio4. Juntament amb Annalisa Giocoli (arquitecta urbanista de l'Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona), van debatre sobre el nexe entre l'energia, el menjar i aigua en el metabolisme urbà. Gara Villalba va explicar a Vida Verda com aconseguir una AMB més resilient mitjançant diferents estratègies.
The COVID-19 pandemic unveiled the fragility of food sovereignty in cities and confirmed the close connection urban dwellers have with food. Although the pandemic was not responsible for a systemic failure, it suggested how citizens would accept and indeed support a transition toward more localized food production systems.