W niniejszej pracy zestawiono środowiskowy i prawny aspekt rozwoju zielonej infrastruktury na terenach miejskich, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem dachów zielonych. Wykazano, że zarówno istniejąca zielona infrastruktura, obejmująca parki, obszary chronione, lasy, pola itd., jak i kreowana de novo, np. w postaci dachów zielonych, minimalizuje skutki zmian klimatu i jest kluczowa dla zrównoważonego rozwoju. Zidentyfikowane korzyści płynące z wprowadzania dachów zielonych to m.in.: oszczędność energii, poprawa jakości powietrza i wody, wspieranie renaturyzacji miast i wzrost różnorodności biologicznej, które łącznie sprzyjają polepszeniu jakości życia w miastach. Dlatego też wskazano potrzebę usankcjonowania rozwoju zielonej infrastruktury na terenach miejskich w systemie prawnym. Dostrzegając aktualne zagrożenia środowiskowe oraz korzyści z zielonej infrastruktury, ustawodawca europejski podał wytyczne dotyczące jej tworzenia. W artykule dokonano przeglądu stanu prawnego i oceniono, w jaki sposób polityka Unii Europejskiej została zaimplementowana do wspólnotowego oraz krajowego porządku prawnego. W szczególności zbadano, w jakim zakresie organy samorządu terytorialnego uwzględniają zieloną infrastrukturę w miejscowych planach zagospodarowania przestrzennego.

This study examines historical water management practices as a means of addressing climate change, focusing on the Tyski Stream catchment in Upper Silesia, Poland, a region marked by extensive urbanization and industrial evolution. It investigates the effectiveness of historical hydrotechnical systems, such as bead-like ponds from the 15th to 18th centuries, in enhancing water retention, reducing flood risks, and supporting ecosystem services. In a critical period, over 54 years (1827–1881), the number of reservoirs decreased from 142 to 31 (the area of ponds decreased from 161 to 32 ha). Throughout the entire period, between 1748 and 2017, the surface area of the analyzed reservoirs decreased from 163 ha to 16.8 ha. This was related to progressive industrialization, urban sprawl, and changes in legal frameworks, such as land ownership laws, leading to ecosystem degradation, loss of biodiversity, and altered hydrological processes. The research emphasizes the potential of reviving historical water management systems on natural processes to mitigate the impacts of climate change. By analyzing historical cartographic resources, this study assesses the feasibility of reconstructing lake systems in areas with similar topographic and hydrological features. It also stresses the necessity of community engagement and securing widespread social and political support to ensure public acceptance and the success of renaturation initiatives. The findings indicate that restoring these systems can offer diverse benefits, including improved water management, enhanced biodiversity, and greater urban resilience, while addressing the socio-political complexities of implementing large-scale environmental restoration projects. The aim of this study is to utilize archival materials for engineering solutions to prevent flooding and enhance water retention.

Using local wild plant resources to create green roofs in urban areas is a sustainable solution that supports cities' adaptation strategies to climate change. Creating extensive green roofs, in accordance with the Nature-Based Solutions concept, supports minimizing the effects of climate change, loss of biodiversity and human health. The aim of this paper is to identify, based on an analysis of published research results, the main criteria for selecting vegetation introduced to green roofs and the role of green roofs in minimizing the effects of climate change in the context of NBS. The data were collected by analyzing the results of studies published in the last 10 years, focusing on plant selection. It was found that species selection often fails to consider plant functional traits. The potential of wild plants in urban-industrial areas for creating green infrastructure and optimizing ecosystem services remains largely unrecognized. However, certain plants with desirable functional traits, originating e.g. from habitats such as post-industrial coal mining waste heaps, show promise in providing functional support to urban ecosystems in minimizing the effects of climate change.

Lawns are among the most widespread forms of urban green infrastructure, yet the ecological consequences of mowing are usually assessed through biodiversity or biomass alone. Using ecological stoichiometry, we tested whether mowing frequency directly alters not only plant biomass and taxonomic composition but also the multielement composition of biomass entering urban food webs. We studied roadside lawns across two cities, under three mowing intensities: low (one cut annually), moderate (three), and frequent (six). We quantified shoot and root biomass across 14 sites, and multielement stoichiometry and plant community structure in a representative subset of 6 sites. Mowing directly affected plant multielement stoichiometry, regardless of changes in biomass production and community structure. Compared to once-per-year mowing, frequent mowing increased median shoot concentrations of P (∼1.3-fold), K (∼1.1-fold), Na (∼9.4-fold), and Mg (∼1.3-fold) but decreased the Fe (∼0.5-fold), Mn (∼0.8-fold), Ni (∼0.5-fold), Cr (∼0.4-fold), and Pb (∼0.7-fold) concentrations and the C:P (∼0.8-fold), N:P (∼0.9-fold), and K:Na (∼0.1-fold) ratios. Root chemistry was considerably less responsive. The stoichiometric shifts were driven primarily by the direct effects of mowing; community composition contributed less. Therefore, mowing affects biogeochemical processes primarily by altering the stoichiometry of plant biomass, and only secondarily by changing the structure and productivity of vegetation. By changing the shoot elemental composition, mowing may affect the nutritional quality and contamination load of matter entering food webs, potentially cascading through trophic networks and nutrient cycles, although broader ecological consequences remain to be tested directly. We recommend integrating stoichiometric perspectives into sustainable urban green space management.

This study aimed to determine the environmental impact of extensive green roofs (EGRs) using a LifeCycle Assessment (LCA) based on an analysis of a 4 m² experimental EGR unit. A literature-based LCA was conducted, covering the first three life cycle stages, followed by a detailed LCA of these stages. The analysis was supplemented with carbon footprint calculations for the individual processes involved in constructing the experimental green roof unit (4 m²). The results showed that the production of green roof components, particularly synthetic materials such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polypropylene, significantly contributes to environmental degradation. The carbon footprint of the 740.15 kg experimental green roof was 0.29 kg CO₂ equivalent per kilogram of green roof system (GRS). While this value is relatively low compared to, for example, selected food products, the environmental impact increases significantly when scaled to actual roof sizes, such as 100 m². Compared to similar studies, such as 150.99 kg CO₂ equivalent per m² for tropical green roofs, this study highlights the variability of environmental impacts depending on climate, materials, and design decisions. Although green roofs are intended to mimic natural ecosystems, current designs often rely on materials with high environmental impacts. Further research into sustainable alternatives and the inclusion of more CO₂-sequestering plant species are necessary to reduce their ecological footprint.

In the digital age, spatial databases are the main source of information on the hydrographic network. However, the main challenge remains the need for frequent updates alongside the accurate presentation of current and potential coverage. Modern geo-information tools based on the processing of remotely sensed materials allow precise modeling of places where reservoirs historically occurred or are predisposed to form. The restoration of reservoirs is significant in the context of flood protection, the improvement of retention conditions, and the development of blue-green infrastructure. It is also much more economically viable than preparing sites for new construction. The missing element in the systematic use of the aforementioned materials and tools for these purposes is methodology. For this reason, in this article, based on images and a point cloud acquired during a photogrammetric aerial flight, five methods are tested, and the most effective method is identified, depending on the intended application.