Prague will make better use of rainwater, the new standards will keep the city moist
According to Deputy Mayor Petr Hlubuček (United Forces / STAN), the new standards will keep the city moist and thus contribute to the metropolitan climate plans. They also have to solve practical problems that arise after the creation of new public spaces.
“When the developer hands over the city’s infrastructure, the roads are taken over by either the Technical Communications Administration (TSK) or the city district, and the networks are taken over by the network operators, but it has been more complicated so far with the tank or drainage elements. Even here, a certain agreement has been reached, “said Hlubuček. All these elements are to be newly managed by the Prague Water Management Company, water in the greenery will be taken care of by Lesy Praha and around the TSK roads.
The new Municipal Standard for Planning, Planting and Caring for Street Trees is more than 200 pages of material from the workshop of the Institute of Planning and Development (IPR). It sets general standards and specific technical requirements that will be binding on all city companies.
“In the Czech environment, this is a certain breakthrough in the fact that these are not only standards in the field of planning, but also follow-up care. Most trees die due to insufficient care, “said Deputy Mayor Petr Hlaváček (United Forces / TOP 09).
How to prepare a place for trees
According to another deputy, Adam Scheinherr (Prague himself), the new rules will help designers determine, for example, how to prepare a place for trees. According to these standards, Scheinherr has already described the planting of trees on the Smetana embankment as a good implementation.
“Specialists have checked the condition and potential of today’s trees. Dendrologists design a special mixture and space for the root system. The assessment also includes an irrigation solution. So the answer to the question of whether it is possible to use rainwater from the road, “said Scheinherr.
The document states, among other things, that “the planting pit must have at least 1.5 times the size of the ground bale or the root system of the free-rooted seedling in suitable conditions”. As a “significant element of blue-green infrastructure”, the city standard will be binding for all contributory organizations of the city as well as the city’s “shares”.
“Prague urgently needs uniform conditions for tree care. Today we can see how big the differences are between the individual administrators of urban greenery. During the reconstructions or the plantings themselves, there are fundamental shortcomings in the uprooting space, where each of the administrators has otherwise large planting pits, a different substrate and, for example, implements a different watering plan, “added representative Tomáš Murňák (Pirates), who promises uniform rules . a significant improvement in the condition and longevity of individual trees and “full use of their potential”.
Uniform rules, which consider municipal politicians and officials, are also the first step towards the creation of a city-wide tree system with a beneficial function for the Prague climate. The coalition leadership also counts on an increase in the green maintenance budget. Of this year’s roughly 100 million crowns, next year could be as much as 230. This is primarily money intended for the care of 60-70 thousand trees, which is managed by TSK. Each of these trees is undergoing or has undergone a complete passport this year, which describes their condition.