23 428157 Camden Open Space Design Manual 1 August 2023 - Flipbook - Page 108
5.7
Design Guidelines – Resilience to climate change
A changing climate creates not only global but regional challenges with communities, infrastructure and
natural areas impacted. Changes to our climate are expected to include increases in extreme temperatures
and weather events, as well as changes to the timing and distribution of rainfall and fire seasons.
In line with Camden Council's Sustainability Strategy the following guidelines apply:
Large scale intervention
− Open space design should encourage more-sustainable lifestyles, such as going to a destination locally
by cycling or walking rather than driving.
− Open space design should take account of landscape characteristics such as topography, vegetation and
microclimate, and helping to maximise the benefits of shelter from intense wind and sun while seeking to
incorporate maximum solar energy and water heating benefits.
− Open space design should provide attractive opportunities for local outdoor leisure activities, also
contributing to improving public health, wellbeing and community engagement.
Site specific intervention
− The creation of urban carbon sinks should be encouraged via the provision of green space which removes
carbon from the atmosphere via storage in biomass and the release of oxygen.
− The installation of green roofs and green walls, should be promoted there by improving the thermal
efficiency of buildings and reducing the use of conventional heating and cooling systems, while also
alleviating flood risk.
− The technical and creative use of open space for ground source heating and cooling should be encouraged.
Working practices
− If possible, local and sustainable sourcing of construction materials should be preferred, with timber from
sustainable sources and greater use of recycled content.
− Procurement of contractual services should be pursued, where possible, from organisations which
demonstrate that effective measures are in place to minimise the carbon intensity of capital works and
site management activities.
Renewable energy
− Design to identify the scale, nature and location of renewable energy solutions and to balance such
requirements with the values we attribute to landscapes.
Green infrastructure
− Design to provide a holistic green infrastructure planning approach that will reduce flood risk, protect
building integrity and improve human health and comfort in the face of more intense rainfall and higher
temperatures.
− Well-connected green infrastructure to provide wildlife corridors for species migration in the face of climate
change as well as wider benefits for recreation, community development, biodiversity, food provision and
place shaping.
Plant species selection
− Design to investigate and identify the changing climate zone of the site when selecting tree species and
any other plant species. It is critical to understand what species to plant, where to plant them and the
conditions different species require to thrive.
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DESIGN GUIDELINES
