Over the last years, there have been growing evidences, particularly in the most developed countries, of a certain disarticulation between the different forms of environmental assessment and the urban development processes taking place in cities and metropolitan areas. It has been argued that these urban areas cannot be the sum of different projects and that a comprehensive and holist view for these cities is needed. Against this background, the Metabolic Impact Assessment (MIA) methodology has been proposed in the context of the SUME project (Sustainable Urban Metabolism for Europe). Grounded on the urban metabolism concept, MIA is an innovative tool that offers this holistic view and that is able to estimate the impact of new planning proposals, such as urban plans and major urban development projects, on the existing metabolic performance of cities and metropolis.
While the application of the metabolism concept in urban areas is not new, the way that MIA enables the understanding of each specific part of the city and the application of this methodology in planning practice are two innovative aspects. Yet, the first application of MIA, albeit producing very interesting results, also has revealed two main weaknesses: i) the methodological complexity and data demanding nature of MIA; and ii) the need to provide MIA with a solid procedural framework, incorporating it into existing Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) procedures.
The research methodology proposed in this project includes 12 fundamental tasks:
Task 1: The identification of procedural and institutional barriers to the application of MIA
This task will involve an in-depth analysis of EU Directive on SEA and of corresponding Portuguese legislation. The development of this task will draw on a sound reflection developed by the research team, over the last decade, on environmental assessment matters.
Task 2: The identification of technical and methodological barriers to the application of MIA
In this task, the research team will explore the simplification of MIA, addressing a number of technical and methodological barriers, bearing in mind its effective application in Portuguese local authorities. This task will involve a review of the main theoretical foundation of MIA and of its models to evaluate the different metabolic components - energy for buildings and transports, water, land use and materials - considering the available information in the context of Portuguese local authorities. Starting from the concept of MIA, as formulated in the SUME project, and identifying the main barriers to the application of the methodology in practice, research team should be able to proceed to the next stages of the project.
Task 3: Development of MIA plug-in into SEA (Strategic Environmental Assessment)
At this stage, the objective will be to produce a kind of 'plug-in' solution to articulate MIA with the existing SEA procedures without significantly changing these.
Task 4: Development of approaches to urban metabolism
This task will be informed by task 2 and developed in parallel with task 3. In the end, the team should have developed a number of user friendly and efficient approaches to urban metabolism modeling (addressing the components of energy, water, land use and materials) and data collection. The end-result will be the Urban Metabolic Performance Index (UMPI).
Task 5: Dissemination (1)
The fifth task is the first moment of dissemination. It will include the preparation of two different papers: one article focused on the incorporation of MIA in the process of SEA, and one paper on the technical simplification of UMPI methodology, to be submitted in different scientific journals. In addition, the project will organize a one-day conference on the subject of climate change, raising awareness on the theme of climate change.
Task 6: Preparation of SEA case studies
After developing UMPI as a plug-in policy option for SEA and a number of approaches to urban metabolism modeling, the research team will prepare a number of SEA case studies on plans and urban projects for Lisbon.
Task 7: Workshop (local authorities)
The seventh task is the testbed at the Local Authority level. The development of this task will involve the collaboration of the local authority of Lisbon. After presenting the simplified version of the UMPI methodology, the research team will apply it to a number of case studies - plans and urban projects. After these applications in Lisbon, an evaluation of this institutional and methodological design will be prepared.
Task 8: Selection of validated procedural policy options
This task is the establishment of a number of Validated Procedural Policy Options. Drawing on the reflection developed by the research team on the institutional issues (tasks 1 and 3) and on the application of a simplified version of UMPI within the local authority, this task will address some potential weaknesses of the integration of the methodology in the SEA procedure and refine all of its main elements in order to build an effective tool that can be used within the Portuguese planning system.
Task 9: Selection of improved approaches to modeling and data collection
The ninth task is the establishment of a number of improved Approaches to Modeling and Data Collection. Drawing on the reflection on the methodological issues and on the application of a simplified version of UMPI within the local authority (task 7), this task will address some potential limitations of UMPI and refine all of its main elements for assessing the metabolic impact, in its different components (energy, water, land use and materials) of plans and major projects.
Task 10: Articulation of procedural and methodological improvements
Drawing on tasks 8 and 9, the task 10 is the Articulation of Procedural and Methodological Improvements to propose the new version of the UMPI methodology.
Task 11: Dissemination (2)
The eleventhtask is the last period of dissemination and it will include the preparation of two outputs: 1) one paper on the technical simplification of UMPI methodology and 2) a paper presenting the potential development path of the UMPI;
Task 12: Final report
The last task of this project is the preparation of the Final Report on the Practice of MIA and is closely related to the development of the task 11.
