Title: Exploring the Influence of Land Use on the Urban Carbonyl Sulfide Budget: A Case Study of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona / Carbonyl sulfide (OCS) is used to quantify the carbon capture potential of the biosphere because of its direct correlation with CO2 uptake during photosynthesis. However, to constrain the urban biosphere signal, it is necessary to evaluate potential anthropogenic sources.
Title: Literature review on the potential of urban waste for the fertilization of urban agriculture: A closer look at the metropolitan area of Barcelona / Urban agriculture (UA) activities are increasing in popularity and importance due to greater food demands and reductions in agricultural land, also advocating for greater local food supply and security as well as the social and community cohesion perspective.
Title: Modelling the impacts of emission changes on O3 sensitivity, atmospheric oxidation capacity, and pollution transport over the Catalonia region / Tropospheric ozone (O3) is an important surface pollutant in urban areas, and it has complex formation mechanisms that depend on the atmospheric chemistry and on meteorological factors. The severe reductions observed in anthropogenic emissions during the COVID-19 pandemic can further our understanding of the photochemical mechanisms leading to O3 formation.
On July 2023, URBAG participated at the X International Conference of Life Cycle Assessment in Latin America (CILCA 2023) with the presentation "Unlocking the potential of municipal solid waste compost for urban and peri-urban agriculture: Nutrient recirculation in metropolitan areas". It was the tenth edition of this conference, which is intended for users of tools based on life cycle thinking at different levels.
On July 2023, URBAG participated at the International Conference of Industrial Ecology (ISIE) with two presentations. Juan David Arosemena presented his research which aims to determine the capacity and environmental impacts of supplying macronutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium from composting organic municipal solid waste. Gara Villalba presented the A decision approach to evaluate the design and implementation of green infrastructures in urban environments.
Title: Analysis of synoptic weather patterns of heatwave events / Heatwaves (HWs) are expected to increase both in duration and intensity in the next decades, but little is known about their synoptic and mesoscalar behavior, which is especially important in mid-latitude regions. We propose that a combination of temperature and synoptic patterns is a better way to define and understand HWs because including atmospheric circulation patterns provides information about different HW structures that can irregularly affect the territory.
Title: The potential of local food, energy, and water production systems on urban rooftops considering consumption patterns and urban morphology / The external resource dependency of urban areas results in the externalization of environmental and socioeconomic impacts. Implementing food, energy and water production systems on urban rooftops (roof mosaics) can potentially help cities become more self-sufficient but depends on the city's urban morphology.
El Consell Metropolità ha aprovat, en sessió extraordinària de data 21 de març de 2023, els documents del Pla Director Urbanístic Metropolità (PDUM) publicats al BOPB. Aquest nou instrument substitueix l'antic Pla General Metropolità (PGM) aprovat el 1976. La nova normativa potencia molt l’estructura verda, així com altres mesures no vinculades amb el verd. Aquí es on el grup URBAG ha aportat els seus estudis.
La Gara Villalba va participar com a ponent el passat 28 de març de 2023 a la Jornada de Balanç de la Declaració d'Emergència Climàtica. El 15 de gener de 2020 Barcelona va declarar l'emergència climàtica. En aquesta declaració es van fixar diverses accions per aplicar abans de 2030. El balanç presenta un 30% de les accions plantejades com a ja finalitzades, mentre que un 66% estan en execució i el 4% restant encara no s'han iniciat.
S'ha preparat un breu resum de l'estat de l'art i consideracions per l'Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona sobre els impactes de les infraestructures verdes urbanes en la qualitat de l'aire. A continuació, es descriuen alguns dels punts que es tracten en aquest document.
On the 17th of March 2023, URBAG conducted a workshop session in the second Edible City Network Conference held in Barcelona. The session was focused in presenting a comprehensive vision of the current urban agriculture challenges and opportunities, by considering both social and environmental perspectives, while employing the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona as case study.
The agricultural land of the Metropolitan Area of Barcelona has been reduced from 20% to 8-9% over the past decades, despite urban gardening being supported by municipal actions. Urban agriculture constitutes a nature-based solution to several societal challenges.