Research

Our climate has already changed considerably, and the effects of climate change are becoming increasingly noticeable (ÖKS15 final report, BMK 2024; Climate Change, Full report IPCC 2022[BS1] ). Weather extremes such as heat waves, droughts, storms and heavy rain are increasing and require increased adaptation and prevention measures. Extreme heat is a major burden on people's health, while urban infrastructures and ecosystems are coming under increasing pressure. The climate crisis is thus increasingly developing into a social and economic crisis. At the same time, energy poverty and housing shortages are worsening in cities. Cities must therefore act immediately and make the necessary investments to promote ecological and fair urban development in the interests of the common good. Given the diverse ecological, social and economic challenges as well as the lengthy duration of planning and decision-making processes and their structural implementation and financing, it is urgently necessary to implement climate change adaptation and climate protection measures on a large scale, effectively and with the involvement of as many actors as possible. Point-by-point and small-scale lighthouse projects may not be sufficient to address and solve the diverse problems holistically. From the applicants' point of view, it is therefore urgently necessary to develop transferable and individually adaptable processes and instruments that raise climate change adaptation from the area of ​​specific individual projects to an Austria-wide scale. The CO2 emissions associated with the measures must also be taken into account in the sense of the European "do no significant harm" strategy. The focus of the project is therefore on demonstrating an effective climate-resilient district transformation with an above-average, cross-silo effect compared to current redesigns of district squares and streets.

Increasing urbanisation and soil sealing intensify the effects of climate change and weather extremes in settlement areas, and also strongly affect Austria. Land use minimises permeable, productive soils and thus infiltration and CO2 storage. Hydrological and biological soil functions are impaired or, in the case of full sealing, completely destroyed. On the other hand, rainwater management is largely characterised by grey solutions. The state of the art lags behind international adaptations considering nature-based alternatives. In addition to preserving the quantity and quality of soils by reducing land use, measures for compensation, land restoration and unsealing are urgently required to counteract this. The elaboration of concepts for unsealing in line with the soil strategy for Austria requires the preparation of a scientific basis and assessment of potentials. This project proposal is specifically dedicated to the topic of unsealing in Austria and what relevant measures can contribute to compensating for lost soil functions (cooling, groundwater recharge, surface runoff neutrality). The aim of PotEnt is to create an information base for Austria, to highlight unsealing potential and to support practical implementation. To this end, PotEnt is developing (A) a basis for unsealing as a restoration or compensation measure, (B) an approach for evaluating unsealing measures with the involvement of experts and stakeholders, and (C) recommendations for unsealing in Austria. The results are (1) an Austria-wide unsealing map with priorities, (2) a method for quantifying the effect of unsealing on the cooling function and water balance, and (3) target-group-specific recommendations and a basis for measures for municipalities, stakeholders and policy-makers.

The project targets to develop a scaleable and multiplyable businessmodel for climate change adaptation in the building stock, at the interface of public and private space. The implementation of a vertical greening pilot and street greening in the Rosaliagasse Vienna is prepared, building upon the results of the previous exploratory study, referring to legal, constructive, greening and financial basics. Meidlinger L-Demo continues here and will clarify the research questions referrint to the design, plant structures, material and constructive solutions. The scientific monitoring will focus ecological and microclimatic effects on the object, the street space and the building. MEIDLINGER L – Demo will elaborate a scaleable and multiplyable model for Vienna and other cities and urban areas. Technical and legal feasibility will be proved. The concepts referring to greening solutions, rain water management, mobility, sanitation, energy gain and the added value for the inhabitants can be transferred to other neighbourhoods and urban districts.