Green Walls Benefits in Contemporary City

Abstract

There is nothing new about using vegetation in buildings and construction of cities. Greenery has always played an important role in the construction of cities. However, contemporary cities are currently dominated by building structures to the detriment of natural elements, causing problems of congestion and pollution. The urban rehabilitation policies should always consider both buildings and vegetation as being defining elements in the city. Green spaces should be present alongside one of the fundamental elements of cities. Not only because they improve the city image, from an aesthetic point of view, but also due to social, cultural or landscape factors. The most recent and compulsory Portuguese urban rehabilitation principles emphasize the improvement of sustainability. It is, therefore, critical to draw attention to this area and find innovative solutions in this domain, especially with regards the integration of vegetation in historical areas. Green walls can be a good choice towards achieving sustainable urban rehabilitation, due to the lack of free space which exists in the consolidated urban fabric. This paper aims to reflect about green walls benefits in the contemporary city and in the urban rehabilitation, identifying the advantages of their utilization as an enhancement of the quality of city image, especially in dense urban areas.