RAMONA

Urban environmental offset strategies to drive sustainable land use

© RAMONA

Stadt-Land-Plus: Achieving more together for strong urban-rural partnerships

Motivation

Metropolitan areas and economically strong urban regions are experiencing an increasing influx of new inhabitants. The development of housing, workplaces and urban infrastructure adds significantly to the pressure on natural resources such as soil, water and air. Land as a resource is becoming increasingly rare. Agricultural production, nature preservation and recreation are competitors for space. In the densely populated region of Stuttgart, urban development projects are impeded by the lack of space for impact mitigation or environmental offset measures. Such projects are thus delayed, displaced to the periphery or even prevented entirely.

Goals and approach

RAMONA records municipal and regional compensation processes and evaluates them on the basis of indicators. Future demand for offset measures is evaluated, a spatial and stakeholder analysis is carried out and scenarios are generated. Innovative strategies are developed to ensure the suitability of offset measures with regard to nature preservation goals and soil protection. A further goal is to promote the inclusion of other land uses such as agriculture and recreation. Regional and multifunctional solutions will be developed.

Expected results and transfer

The project contributes to integrating the impact mitigation regulation into landscaperelated urban-rural strategies and to implement sensible compensatory measures. The results will be summarised in guidelines and made available to other municipalities.