The world's first water Park, rain water

"Watersquare Benthemplein", developed by "De Urbanisten", is a public Park using collected during the rains the water. Located in Rotterdam, the fundamentally innovative eco-project to solve global climate problems and at the same time creates a cool oasis in the middle of dense urban development.





"The Dutch have lived below sea level for many centuries, and we have considerable experience in opposition to floods using dams and barriers... But today we are faced with more abundant and unpredictable rainfall, than our ancestors. The drainage system can not cope with such amount of precipitation, and the city literally becomes a sponge," says the Vice-mayor of Rotterdam Alexandra van Hefflin (Alexandra van Huffelen).





Lissie News (Lissy Nijhuis, head of the project "the Rotterdam Climate Initiative (RCI), said that following the "green" innovation time "blue climate solutions." It is time to take the first steps in the development of sustainable water resources management in preparation for the most extreme scenarios of future climate. Advance planning includes socio-psychological aspect: it is necessary to make sure that people continued to live and to enjoy the water and not to feed her subconscious fear due to the threat of flooding.





The project "Watersquare Benthemplein is discreet, but very effective strategy to mitigate the impact of excess precipitation for the city. This structure can hold up to 1700 cubic metres of rainwater, collected from the surrounding streets. Therefore, this simple system serves as an additional "insurance" for infrastructure, reducing the load on the drainage system.





However, innovation in the full sense of the word, this idea is not called. Something similar exists for many centuries in India, where three months of the year are monsoon rains, and the next nine consecutive months the duration of the drought. To stock up enough water, the locals built a special step-wells with a depth of tens of meters — the so-called "Baoli". To get water, need to go down the stairs on the walls of the well, shaped like an inverted pyramid.





"Watersquare Benthemplein" can be called a very simplified version of this model. In the dry season a large pool serves as a multi-sports field and can be used for football, basketball, street hockey and other sports. Here, on several levels-the levels are placed benches for spectators. This space can be used as an outdoor theatre or as a Playground for children.





During heavy rainfall the Central pool collects water from the two smaller tanks situated nearby. Rain water flows down a special steel gutters – and indeed all that moves water made from this shiny material. And containers that can collect rain water, painted in shades of blue. The Park is enlivened with green areas where you can meet friends, relax and have a snack. And all the plants are irrigated due to the same rain water.





The authors of the project argue that to invest in extreme reservoir in this case means investing in quality public space. After all the bad weather lasts for a maximum of 10% of the time, and the remaining 90% of the building serves as a place of rest, relaxation and strengthening of health of local residents. And if you're lucky, and the new items in the travel itinerary of the guests of Rotterdam.

Source: facepla.net