Vision for an Urban Estuary: Reconnecting Richmond to the Fraser River in an Era of Sea Level Rise

Download or read book Vision for an Urban Estuary: Reconnecting Richmond to the Fraser River in an Era of Sea Level Rise written by Sarah Primeau and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Rapid sea level rise is presenting a serious challenge to the future of deltaic cities. New flood protection infrastructure risks creating a further disconnect between these cities, their waterfronts, and their surrounding estuaries. The City of Richmond, British Columbia, is similarly being challenged to plan for rising sea levels while undertaking waterfront revitalization. My graduate design project thus seeks to help Richmond adapt to sea level rise while restoring the physical, ecological and cultural connections between the City and the Fraser River. I have sought to develop a model for flood-adapted urbanism that uses elevated grades, stormwater storage, tidal swales, and a flood gate for flood protection redundancy. At the heart of my design proposal is a 13-hectare tidal channel park that brings the Fraser River Estuary into the heart of the City Centre, reconnecting people with the water along 3 km of new riverfront property. The tidal channel park also allows landward wetland migration, supports juvenile salmon rearing, and filters stormwater runoff. These measures will allow the neighbourhood to adapt to rising sea-levels while increasing its livability, ecological richness, and island identity.