Antwerp
September 21 – 25, 2011
| Location: | Centraal Station |
|---|---|
| Opening hours: | daily 10 a.m.–07 p.m. Wed 01 p.m.–07 p.m. |
Last stop: Antwerp. Before the Train of Ideas returns to Hamburg, it will stop in the Belgian port. There, urban development projects like roofs with greenery and a park on a former railway site are inspiring.
City websiteAntwerp – with green roofs to combat flooding
Like many parts of Belgium, Antwerp is frequently threatened by flooding. Green roofs are intended to store rain water and so lower the risk.
Starting this year, in Antwerp all new and renovated flat roofs must have greenery. This pays off several times over: First of all, plants on the roof improve insulation, reducing both energy consumption and the noise level in the buildings. Secondly, green roofs provide new habitats for plants and animals. Larger spaces also offer recreational space for people. And thirdly – and for Antwerp particularly importantly – plants store rain water. So they reduce the risk of flooding, which is comparatively high in the Belgian port.
Electricity from the landfill
Antwerp has demonstrated in recent years how a landfill can be turned into a green power station. For a long time, Hooge Maey served as a waste dump for household and industrial waste. Now the methane gas that leaks out of the organic garbage is captured and used to generate electricity. In addition, contaminated water from the landfill is cleaned in a processing plant. Exactly as at Hamburg’s Georgswerder energy mountain, which also developed from an old landfill site, wind energy turbines are set to turn on Hooge Maey in the future.
Old railway site to become a green oasis
And yet another project reveals parallels between Antwerp and Hamburg: The park Spoor Noord connects neighborhoods which were separated by a railway site several years ago. Where trains once operated, neighborhood residents now play football or ride their bikes. The former railway buildings serve as cultural and sports facilities. Green urban development that has become the accepted thing: In Hamburg, enormous covers over highway 7 are intended to unite separate neighborhoods and create areas for local recreation. Traffic is to flow underneath on the developed highway.
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