Climate change adaptation in Europe and the United States: A comparative approach to urban green spaces in Bilbao and New York City

• Published in: Land use policy 2018-12, Vol.79, p.164-173
• Main Authors: García Sánchez, Francisco, Solecki, William D., Ribalaygua Batalla, Cecilia
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adaptation; Cities; Climate adaptation; Climate change; Climate change adaptation; Environmental policy; Environmental risk; Green infrastructure; Indicator; Land use; Open spaces; Policies; Risk management; Sustainability; Urban areas; Urban Green Spaces; Urban planning; Urban regeneration; Urban renewal
• ISSN: 0264-8377; 1873-5754
• DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2018.08.010

•National and regional legislations do not specify adaptation actions for cities.•Municipal autonomy favors regulations for incorporating climate change adaptation.•Cities are the most active entities in the implementation of adaptation strategies.•For adapting Bilbao & New York, Urban Green Spaces become one of the main resources.•Indicators of UGS are defined in order to increase resilience at neighborhood scale. Climate change adaptation policies in the United States and Europe have common aims but a different initial focus. While in the United States the principal factor when establishing adaptation plans and programs is based on risk control, the criterion in most European countries is directly linked to strategies of urban regeneration and sustainability. In both cases, cities are taking up the initiative to define adaptation strategies without waiting for state legislative acts. This article focuses on analysis of the ability of Urban Green Spaces to promote adaptation to climate change for both risk control and as an urban regeneration resource. With the analysis of two urban regeneration cases studied in zones affected by climate change, Red Hook in New York and Zorrotzaurre in Bilbao, the adaptation policies in the United States and Europe are studied. These cases allow a focus on how cities’ capacities to establish initiatives for specific adaptation measures include Urban Green Spaces. Final conclusions reveal that, according to the extreme events expected, location and composition of Urban Green Spaces is key in the adaptive strategy of cities facing climate change.