There’s more to managing stormwater than ‘pipe to pond’
Looks all too familiar, doesn’t it? Far too often we are seeing images across our news channels on localised and global flooding. According to the UK Environment Agency, over 5 million homes are at risk of flooding in England alone. The average cost of flooding to a home is £30k and the mental health impacts […]
Mission – Possible!
The negative effects of climate change we see and hear worrying, the proven statistics are even more so. Whilst we at GreenBlue Urban understand the urgent challenge of Climate Change, it is often presented as barely possible to halt; nevertheless, humankind has the power to press the brakes on what feels like a runaway train. […]
Global Climate Change – A Paradigm Shift Required
Adapting to Climate Change has never been so important; as the BBC reported just this week the past seven years have been the hottest on record. In 2021, Europe lived through its warmest and wettest summer and record temperatures were reported in Western US and Canada; extreme wildfires killing hundreds – all these statistics are […]
Looking back at 2021
This year has been a challenge for all of us – wherever we are on the globe. In the GreenBlue Urban world, we have been very fortunate compared to many, but even we have faced significant hurdles as we continue to enable sustainable places and enjoyable spaces in our urban realm. When we look at […]
Following up – The Urban Green up!
Following our blog published on 2nd September 2021, GreenBlue Urban was privileged to be on the panel of landscape professionals at Futurescape two weeks ago. This panel discussed the potentials of supermarket car parks for urban greening, biodiversity and stormwater management. Hosted by Rachael Forsyth of Eljays44 – the organiser of Futurescape, the panellists Adam […]
It’s all Change at FutureScape!
The new venue for Futurescape, Excel London, was a fitting place to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the UK’s most popular landscape show. With more space, more exhibitors, and attendees thronging to the in-person event, it was, for most, a great success. The seminar sessions were fast and fun, with salient points being reinforced by […]
Combatting Climate Change through Green and Blue
Cop26 Glasgow is here! Green and Blue Infrastructure are one of the most critical solutions to ultimately slow down climate change and to keep global warming to 1.5 degrees. Each country will bring their updated plans (NDCs) on how they plan to reduce emissions and face climate change head-on. COP26 has to be the most […]
Help Green Our Planet!
Tree-planting has become the foundation of many environmental campaigns in recent years. The call to plant trees is everywhere, seen as a simple and effective way to help reduce the impact of carbon emissions and restore natural ecosystems. Managing our urban forests to help them retain, and more importantly increase their carbon storage potential can […]
Slowing the Flow at Flood Expo
Finally, we are jumping for joy to announce that events are back! It was a pleasure to be public-facing again whilst exhibiting at the NEC Birmingham for FloodExpo 2021. The team were delighted to meet with professionals from the water industry, whilst displaying our innovative SUDS related products and new marketing collateral on our eye-catching […]
Designing for Climate Change
Climate Change is a term that is used every day, but do we fully understand the importance of what this means for us, our families, our communities, and the human race? Our home, country and planet are rapidly changing and these changes may be irreversible unless we design correctly now. This action must be immediate […]
Bringing Nature to your Doorstep
Biodiversity surrounds us in our everyday lives without us even noticing, from the birds in the trees above us, the worms in the soil beneath us and the insects that fly around us. We live in a world where nature came first, yet with all the publicity of climate change, we still continue to destroy […]
Industry Collaboration for “The Green Up” Campaign
Pro Landscaper is launching a new campaign to help improve biodiversity within supermarket car parks. The Green Up Campaign is committed to seeing more green and less grey in supermarket car parks and is proudly sponsored by GreenBlue Urban, idverde and Hillier Trees. Pro Landscaper magazine’s Rachael Forsyth, who is leading the campaign, commented: “The […]
Quotation to Seamless Installation
Green infrastructure is often described as a series of interconnected networks of multifunctional green space, providing multiple benefits and accommodating sustainable developments. These elements include parks, open space, trees, both street and private, playing fields, woods, private gardens, allotments and green roofs and walls. Based in the South of England, GreenBlue Urban has grown every […]
Maintenance – Who is Responsible?
One of the most frequently asked questions when planning Green Infrastructure in our urban areas is who will maintain it? And what’s the cost? Whilst maintenance-free trees and planting schemes do not exist, careful specification of the planting methodologies can reduce maintenance to a minimal level. Historical tree failures – both in terms of failed […]
Good Design Starts Below Ground
It’s all too easy when designing an urban space, to begin with, what we have at or above ground level, superimpose our new vision over this and sell the idea to the client on this basis. However, we at GreenBlue Urban believe that good design starts below ground. In our experience, the best results come […]
Multi-Functional Blue-Green Developments
The 25-year Environmental Plan (2018) and more recently The Environment Bill (2020) has been a clear driver to connect more people to our environment, improve health and well-being and to ensure we leave future generations with improved air and water quality, create richer habitats for wildlife and of course omit wasteful pollution from landfill and […]
Building for a Healthy Life
Building for a Healthy Life (BHL 2020) updates England’s most widely used design tool for creating places that are better for people and nature. The document highlights a 12-point structure that reflects recent changes to legislation (NPPF) and in response to user feedback and best practice. Findings have been in collaboration with Homes England, NHS […]
Designing a 15 Minute City
Before COVID 19 and the need for working at home became essential, a ’15 minute City’ concept seemed near to impossible. Now, these barriers have been removed, the world has slowed down and multiple lockdowns have been relaxed, our hectic lives now feel less busy. Our days used to consist of long commutes and constantly […]
SuDS Slowing the Flow.
Stormwater management is close to the heart of GreenBlue Urban. This month has seen us assess the best-practice methods, products and case studies within our industry, conclusively finishing with our ‘Festival of Ideas, Guest Panel Webinar’. Combining the Blue with the Green was famously the deciding factor on our company name change back in 2013, […]
GBU Canada RootSpace Litigation Announcement (28 May 2021).
GreenBlue Urban UK (then Greenleaf) pioneered the world’s first recycled plastic, load-bearing soil cell for urban tree planting called RootCell. After it was launched to the market in 2001, RootCell’s popularity grew at an unprecedented pace. Customers lauded the development as an excellent solution to solve the problem caused by tree roots damaging the urban […]
Why the Water Industry is Better Together
Guest Blog:- Faye Gennard – World of Water Water is our most precious resource and it may come as no surprise that when we search for life, what we are actually searching for is water. No living organism can live without it, but, as any water professional will tell you, humans can’t live with it […]
Are there Post Planting Constraints?
Many potential tree-planting schemes are cancelled because of misunderstandings over the long term requirements of trees. Concerns over local authority adoption, potential commuted sums and maintenance issues can lead to trees being viewed as liabilities rather than the incredible assets that they truly are. Let’s take these issues apart, as a better understanding of these […]
Trees in the Urban Realm – Legacy or Liability
As soon as tree planting is proposed in our congested urban areas, the full plethora of challenges quickly become obvious. When planning urban tree planting, an understanding of the constraints that urban areas present are critical if long term canopy cover is going to be possible. Our most recent webinar challenged the urban planting myths […]
Myth busting Trees & Utilities
In a recent blog, we discussed how to overcome the constraints that we come up against when planning urban tree planting and discussed the solutions that GreenBlue Urban offer to overcome these above and below ground issues. One question that gets asked regularly is whether utilities can be accommodated within a GreenBlue Urban RootSpace soil […]
Right Tree, Right Place
One of the best known arboricultural statements is Right tree, Right place – often used to explain the species choice or planting site for new trees. Unfortunately, this phrase has become a bit hackneyed and is really too simplistic for useful application in urban planting schemes, where there are so many factors involved. Alan Simson, […]
