ECOLOGY

After the previous analysis, we could observe that the green spaces in Quilmes are very low in number, having a total of 2.56km2 of green spaces, which means 4.42m² per capita. The World Health Organization recommends at least 9m² of green space per person and considers an ideal of 50m². This means there is a strong need for increasing green open spaces in Quilmes.

The ecology of Quilmes is understood as the whole system of green spaces and its relations. Associated with the waters, they form the entire system of public space of the city.

The vegetation system is composed by two main areas of intervention:

-The first area of intervention is the riverside of La Plata River, from the edge of the river to the highway, the entire floodplain. This area has been deeply damaged throughout the past century. The colonization of the neighborhood of la Ribera has ignored the marshland character of the place, urbanizing a floodable area without taking appropriate measures and destroying an ecosystem of high value. There is a long stripe of protected forests that was interrupted by the construction of the new neighborhood. At the same time, the construction of the highway cuts the floodplain leaving low grounds in a risky situation for rain drainage and integration. Also, there is a vast landfill under the property of CEAMSE that spoils a large area of the floodplain, polluting the ground and modifying completely its character. Finally, a pipeline crosses the floodplain under the neighborhood of la Ribera, spoiling the ground in leak points.

In order to fix the damaged ecosystem and in response to all the challenges mentioned above, the new vegetation system proposes two different characters for the floodplain, defining a natural park next to the riverside and an urban park next to the highway.

The natural park would be protected and responds to a territorial understanding of the place, consolidating the marshes and the autochthonous vegetation that goes from Buenos Aires to the city of La Plata.

On the other hand, the urban park is related to the future developments that take place in the form of vegetated berms. These berms are built along the drainage channels coming from upstream of the highway and converted into green corridors. Both the natural and the urban park are flooded during sudestada.

-The second area of intervention is the consolidated city, south from the highway. In this area a system of green corridors weaves a green grid over the entire city. The green corridors are connected with the urban park in the riverside through the drainage channels that cross under the highway and are continuous up to the arroyos. The highway is reconceptualized and the residual spaces on its south side are converted into a linear park that widens when possible and accompanies the rainwater interceptor.

Some streets and vacant lands with great potential for helping consolidate the green grid are spotted and converted into slow mobility or pedestrian green corridors. The arroyos are renaturalized and its riverbanks are recovered as potential green corridors that have continuity with the new development in the Acceso Sudeste and the new river. The arroyos area shows many challenges regarding flood and water pollution that need to be solved. There are many vacant lots along the arroyos that could be integrated into the new system of open green spaces and could help solve flooding issues. Also, there are some villas in the riverbanks of the arroyos under high risk of flood that should be relocated with time.