River Clyde was once a natural crossing river through Glasgow city. People easily gathered along the riverbank and engaged in various activities. Many birds and other species also inhabited and frequently appeared along this river. However, with the development of Glasgow's economy and shipbuilding industry, River Clyde has experienced continuous dredging and deepening, resulting in the gradual change of the river edge from a natural state to a hard one. This process drained a vast tidal marsh ecosystem in which a large expanse of marsh complex survived. Also, people lost their opportunities to get access to the river. Nowadays, those industries have gone, but their impacts remain. Soil pollution, habitat fragmentation, and low public participation are critical issues for the riverbank to address. It also requires higher resilience against daily tidal change and future floods.
Zhuojun Jian
Project description
Project team
Clyde Evolution
Glasgow Riverbank Scape Frame
Through investigating the changes in historical river channel morphology and combining that with the data on flooding prediction, some potential pilot sites are selected to form a transferable frame. These sites are all in overlapping areas with apparent changes in riverbank morphology and significant flooding risk in the future. The transformation of this frame is extended to the city from the river edge, and it will expand the border from a rigid line to a transition area to create a new riverbank scape. The target sites in this project are two adjacent brownfields. Existing Riverbank Museum and student accommodation bring large potential users to the area while the site has no ecological value and attractiveness and low accessibility. Also, it is under the threat of future flooding. The hard edge also separates the site from River Clyde and destroys the resilience and habitat of the site. This project aims to restore the use of abandoned brownfields, reconnect it with the river and give it new ecological and educational values.
Strategy
The strategy is letting nature work and maximizing the role of the edge effect to restore ecosystem function and using wetland as transitional spaces to increase habitats resilience and shorten the distance between people and water. Through the rational transformation of the edge, a healthy water system linking rainwater, wetlands, and river water will be formed, and it will provide an abundance of wildlife habitat and open space that attracts local. The design considers the natural order of wetland succession, Firstly through topographic reconstruction and the introduction of pioneer plant communities to create different types of biological habitats to build the ecosystem base, in the following years, the first introduced species will promote the natural formation of organic matter, and the plant community will gradually increase in abundance, thereby providing a diverse habitat for wildlife. At the same time, more waterfront paths and programs will be introduced to provide local residents with more engagement. It also allows them to get an education from a close-up experience of natural processes In nowadays the edge between Glasgow City and River Clyde is “dead”. The species that used to inhabit here have left, and the local residents are separated from the river bank. This project will rearrange the riverbank space, and transform it from a single brownfield into a diverse and resilient ecotone, which will reconnect urban residents, wildlife and River Clyde.
Site Evolution
Site Masterplan
Site Section Proposal
Tidal Marsh & Internal Wetland Visuals
Zhuojun Jian
