Archinect - News 2024-11-12T14:45:49-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/149973118/the-absorbing-design-of-china-s-anti-flood-sponge-cities The absorbing design of China's anti-flood "sponge cities" Julia Ingalls 2016-10-11T13:08:00-04:00 >2016-10-13T23:55:31-04:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/6k/6kyrnetchp9fto5y.jpeg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p>Is flood mitigation the new frontier in urban planning?&nbsp;<a href="http://archinect.com/news/tag/643/china" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">China</a>, whose urban centers have regularly been experiencing infrastructure-shuttering floods, is actively encouraging its metropolises to start reshaping themselves to handle the new reality via the so-called "sponge city" program. As an article in<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2016/oct/03/china-government-solve-urban-planning-flooding-sponge-cities" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">&nbsp;The Guardian</a> notes:</p><p><em>The sponge city programme takes inspiration from low impact development in the US, water sensitive urban design in Australia and sustainable drainage systems in the UK.&nbsp;</em></p><p><em>But nothing at this scale has ever been attempted before. &ldquo;The sponge city programme is more comprehensive and ambitious,&rdquo; says WenMei Ha, head of the China water management team at Arcadis, an international urban consultancy which was appointed to this plan by the government.</em></p><p>For more on flood mitigation and the entities trying to rise above it:</p><ul><li><a href="http://archinect.com/features/article/149964898/come-rain-or-shine-reviving-collective-urban-form-with-the-gsd-s-office-for-urbanization" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Come rain or shine: reviving collective urban form with the GSD's Office for Urbanization</a></li><li><a href="http://archinect.com/news/article/149956094/designing-around-sea-level-rise-in-new-york" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Designing around sea-level rise in New York</a></li><li><a href="http://archinect.com/features/article/149961143/at-home-in-a-changing-climate-strategies-for-adapating-to-sea-level-rise" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">At home in a changing cli...</a></li></ul>