Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 4. Sustainable Land Use Refer to Section 2.4 of the Guidance Note 4A. Present Situation Please complete the following table providing the most recent data that is available: Table 1: Benchmarking Data - Sustainable Land Use Land use within the city (this will provide important background information on the character of the city and is not an evaluation criterion itself) Overall City[4] Inner City[4] Land Use Data *only “urban”, Unit Year of Data Provided *See Fig. A1 See Fig. A1 39* Green area* *Significantly *It was not possible to calculate private and 23 more if public green areas separately including rural areas of Lahti Private Green Area * (Urban) Agricultural Land 7 4* *Misleading Blue 1 due to defining “city” as % 2017 “urban” area. See Fig. A1 Residential 22 24 Industrial/Economic 8 9 included in included in Mixed[1] residential residential Brownfield[2] 4 1 Other[3] 42 16 Total 100 100 Population Data Inner City[4] Overall City[4] Unit Year of Data Provided Population density in built-up areas (city Inhabitants 63 18 2017 area minus green and blue) per ha High rise block Population density (inhabitants per Low-rise mean Inhabitants mean 2017 hectare) for new developments 21 per ha 103 1 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Percentage of people living within 300 m 99 99 % 2017 of green urban areas of any size Percentage of people living within 300 m 99 99 % 2017 of green urban areas of >5,000 m2 [1]Please specify the land use types within the ‘mixed land’ [2]See guidance note for clarification [3]Please specify ‘other’within Table1: Benchmarking Data – Sustainable Landuse. Add additional rows as required. [4] Please refer to Guidance Note section 2.4 on how to delineate ‘Inner City’ and ‘Overall City’. [INSERT RESPONSE to Footnotes [1] and [4] HERE. Please note that this text response is not included in the word count] Green Urban Areas/Green Infrastructure 1. Is there a vision on green areas/green infrastructure within the urban tissue (or on the connection of urban green scapes to rural or natural ‘hinterland’)? 2. In what way do green areas (green infrastructure) affect the living environment (in the environmental, social, and economic contexts)? 3. What is the quality of urban green (and blue) areas, and what indicators are used to assess the quality of the green areas? 4. How is accessibility to green urban areas ensured for all citizens? Sustainable Land Use 5. Is there a vision or strategy for sustainable land use (including urban sprawl, soil sealing and/or redeveloping underused areas)? 6. How does the city anticipate dealing with current and future changes (such as economic growth, demographic or climate change) in sustainable land use planning? 7. How much land within the city consists of brownfields (or derelict or underused zones) and how many of those areas have been regenerated during the last 5 years (please refer to the map)? 8. To what extent is the (percentage of) sealed surface (with buildings, pavement or otherwise) causing challenges within the urban tissue? Urban Farming 9. Are there any areas allocated for urban agriculture/allotment gardening? If so, how many? 10. To what extend do the urban farming areas contribute to the urban food supply? Maps ▪ Provide a land use map that indicates a) the municipality boundaries delineating the overall city area; b) the inner city area; ▪ Provide additional map(s) showing green and blue areas in the city, and their connectivity and coherence; ▪ Provide map(s) of the location of brownfield sites (derelict zones) that: a) Have been regenerated in the past ten years; 2 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 b) Have not been redeveloped (yet). (max. 1,100 words and five graphics, images or tables plus the three requested maps detailed above) Green Urban Lahti and Ecosystem Services City of Lahti has set ambitous targets for protecting the green and blue urban areas and their valuable functions [6, 7, 8]. Due to a specific geographic structure, the Ice-Age ridge “Salpausselkä”, there is a green spine-like-structure throughout the whole city (Fig. A1). This provides easily accessible green urban infrastructure for the citizens and provides an ample of ecosystem services. Regional green network connects the recreational and sport facilities of Lahti Region (Map 2). Figure A1. Salpausselkä ridge forms a green corridor for urban area of Lahti. Ecosystem services are being mapped for the entire Lahti area. The Master Plan requires evaluation of impacts on ecosystem services, when developing new areas. Green infrastructure is kept and improved with future wildlife over- and underpasses (4C). Wetlands are used for managing stormwater in new developments or added to old urban areas. A system of meandering streams, a retention pond and a wetland have been built in Karisto. Approximately 10-20 green roofs or other green structures (e.g. rooftop gardens) exist in Lahti. The quality of the green and blue infrastructure is monitored and progressively improved [6, 7, 8]. City of Lahti 3 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 annually publishes an Environmental Review with the key blue and green infrastructure indicators [17]. These key indicators are, e.g.: • Areas protected, percentage of the municipal land area (%) • Habitat sites protected under the Environmental Protection Act (ha) • Traditional landscapes (ha) • Percentage of lakes in good or excellent condition (% of total lake surface area) • Lake water chlorophyll a, measured in August (µg/L) Accessible Blue and Green Areas of Lahti • Blue and green areas cover over 80% of Lahti (Fig. A1). • In 2015, Lahti had 164 playgrounds, 39 kindergarten yards, about 30 schoolyards, 40 sporting grounds and 8 communal gardens. • Urban green areas are mostly forests with extensive path networks and other recreational structures (huts, bonfire sites). • All forests and meadows, in Finland, are freely accessible for roaming or picking wild berries and mushrooms (Everyman's Right). • Forest paths have many information signs, but more need to be installed. • Forest paths are often covered with wood chips (soft, for running). • In winter, some forest paths are managed for skiing. Lakes have managed skiing and skating paths. • Nature conservation areas have good and accessible infrastructure: information signs, wooden paths and bird watching towers. • Lake Vesijärvi and smaller lakes are actively used for swimming (16 public beaches), fishing and skiing. Growth of Lahti In 1868, Lahti had merely 18 houses but then, a railway was built and a canal to Lake Vesijärvi was constructed. These transport routes spurred development. New residential and industrial areas were rapidly built. Only 10 years later, Lahti received market town rights and a first urban plan was devised. The City of Lahti was established in 1905. In the 1930’s, Lahti was one of the fastest-growing cities in Finland (Fig. A2). The population grew exponentially until 1975. Since the mid-1990’s, the population has slowly increased. Since merging with the neighbouring municipality of Nastola in 2016, Lahti has about 120 000 residents. 4 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A2. The population growth of Lahti City. Sustainable Land Use Urban development is compact, but green, and the city centre is densely built (imperviousness approx. 65%) (Fig. A3). Large and continuous forests on the Salpausselkä ridge reach into the centre (Fig. A1; A3)[2]. This important green connection will decidedly be conserved. In 2017, 748 new dwellings were built: 21 apartment buildings, 13 terraced houses and 122 detached houses. 5 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A3. Densely build urban environment of Lahti with natural Salpausselkä ridge behind. The sealed surface amount was calculated by the Finnish Environment Institute in 2010 but, current data is unavailable, due to the lack of a monitoring tool. Continuous Master Planning The City of Lahti has developed a continuous, strategic Master Plan process, with four-year cycles [3, 4]. This enables a long-term view of urban development, while allowing adjustments for pressing development needs and challenges. During each Master Plan cycle, various impacts of the proposed plan are assessed by city officials and qualified academic experts. Residents of all ages are encouraged to actively participate (4B) [5]. The implementation of the Master Plan is programmed for each four-year period. During the current cycle (2017-2020), a Master Plan covering the whole new Lahti will be devised, including the creation of a SUMP (4C). Smart growth is a key goal of the Master Plan. Projected population growth is 1% annually, and roughly two thirds of this growth has been planned for existing built-up areas (Fig. A1). This is achieved through consolidating the inner urban area and controlling growth in the outer areas. In recent years, brownfields, within 3 km of the urban core, have undergone regeneration, with many projects underway (Fig. A5). Lahti strives to keep urban sprawl under control and only limited areas are developed for detached houses. Local services are accessible by public transport, bicycling and walking in these fringe areas. Master Plan follow-up includes measures of liveability on a city-wide level. 6 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A4. Population density in 2025 compared to year 2017. 7 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Redeveloping Brownfields Brownfields along railways and near Lake Vesijärvi have been or are being re-developed (Fig. A3). The former industrial harbour area is now very popular. In 2000, a modern extension was added to an old factory to build, Sibeliustalo, a concert hall. Apartment buildings were constructed and cafeterias opened in old buildings.