Petr Klusáček

LOCATION MATTERS! EXPLORING BROWNFIELDS REGENERATION IN A SPATIAL CONTEXT (A CASE STUDY OF THE SOUTH MORAVIAN REGION, CZECH REPUBLIC)

Abstract In this paper the authors attempt to answer the question of which location and site-specific factors have a decisive influence on the successful regeneration of brownfields. Using data from the South Moravian Region (Czech Republic), we analyze the spatial and functional distribution of brownfields, and test the correlation between the development potential of municipalities and the distribution of the brownfields that have already been regenerated. We then compare the structure and characteristics of existing and regenerated brownfields to identify significant drivers and barriers in the regeneration process. The findings indicate that regenerated brownfields are more likely located in municipalities with a higher local development potential (represented by the rate of local business activities, spatial peripherality - proximity to the regional centre and the main road network, and the quality of local infrastructure). It is also demonstrated that the large size of brownfields, their previous industrial use and the existence of contamination are not determinative barriers for regeneration if the brownfields are located in attractive areas and their ownership relations are not complicated. Shrnutí Článek se snaží odpovědět na otázku, které lokalizační a specifické faktory mají rozhodující vliv na úspěšnou regeneraci brownfields. S využitím dat za Jihomoravský kraj, autoři analyzují prostorovou a funkční distribuci brownfields, testují souvislost mezi rozvojovým potenciálem obcí a rozmístěním již regenerovaných brownfields a porovnávají strukturu a charakteristiky existujících a regenerovaných brownfields, aby identifikovali signifikantní katalyzátory a bariéry procesu regenerace. Výsledky ukazují, že regenerované brownfields se mnohem častěji nachází v obcích s vyšším rozvojovým potenciálem, který je reprezentován zejména mírou lokální podnikatelské aktivity, periférností (blízkostí k regionálními centru a napojením na hlavní silniční síť) a kvalitou lokální infrastruktury. Také se potvrdilo, že velikost brownfileds, jejich předchozí industriální využití a existence kontaminace nepředstavují rozhodující bariéry, pokud se nachází v atraktivní lokalitě a nemají komplikované vlastnické vztahy

The Path From Passivity Toward Entrepreneurship Public Sector Actors in Brownfield Regeneration Processes in Central and Eastern Europe

Europeanization research dealing with the environmental transition in Eastern Europe has focused on the roles of state actors in adopting European regulations. Less well understood are the framings and roles of public administration actors when European Union regulations do not prescribe specific institutional changes. This article offers a micro perspective on the framings and roles of such actors in several cases of brownfield regeneration. Actors can play a proactive role, thereby fostering change, or they can play a moderately active or a passive role. We identify three moments—defining brownfield problems, mobilizing networks, and leading by example—which together define an entrepreneurial path. Along this path, actors can evolve from passivity toward entrepreneurship, but stasis and regression are also possible. Using qualitative data from the project TIMBRE (Tailored Improvement of Brownfield Regeneration in Europe), we illustrate different moments along this path for public sector actors in the Czech Republic, Poland, and Romania.

Population Decline in Polish and Czech Cities during Post-socialism? Looking Behind the Official Statistics:

The evolving debate on ‘urban shrinkage’ mirrors an increasing interest in demographic phenomena on the part of urban scholars. This paper discusses ambiguous evidence about recent population decline in the large cities of Poland and the Czech Republic, with a particular focus on Łódz and Brno in general and their inner cities more specifically. By applying a mixed-method approach, the paper identifies indications of inner-city repopulation and socio-demographic diversification which are not yet apparent in register or census data. It is argued that there are indications of a silent transformation of traditional residential patterns and neighbourhoods in east central Europe. In the inner cities, this is reflected, amongst other things, by the presence of new households that may be called ‘transitory urbanites’.

Timbre brownfield prioritization tool to support effective brownfield regeneration.

In the last decade, the regeneration of derelict or underused sites, fully or partly located in urban areas (or so called brownfields), has become more common, since free developable land (or so called greenfields) has more and more become a scare and, hence, more expensive resource, especially in densely populated areas. Although the regeneration of brownfield sites can offer development potentials, the complexity of these sites requires considerable efforts to successfully complete their revitalization projects and the proper selection of promising sites is a pre-requisite to efficiently allocate the limited financial resources. The identification and analysis of success factors for brownfield sites regeneration can support investors and decision makers in selecting those sites which are the most advantageous for successful regeneration. The objective of this paper is to present the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool (TBPT), developed as a web-based solution to assist stakeholders responsible for wider territories or clusters of brownfield sites (portfolios) to identify which brownfield sites should be preferably considered for redevelopment or further investigation. The prioritization approach is based on a set of success factors properly identified through a systematic stakeholder engagement procedure. Within the TBPT these success factors are integrated by means of a Multi Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) methodology, which includes stakeholders requalification objectives and perspectives related to the brownfield regeneration process and takes into account the three pillars of sustainability (economic, social and environmental dimensions). The tool has been applied to the South Moravia case study (Czech Republic), considering two different requalification objectives identified by local stakeholders, namely the selection of suitable locations for the development of a shopping centre and a solar power plant, respectively. The application of the TBPT to the case study showed that it is flexible and easy to adapt to different local contexts, allowing the assessors to introduce locally relevant parameters identified according to their expertise and considering the availability of local data.

Targeted selection of brownfields from portfolios for sustainable regeneration: User experiences from five cases testing the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool

Prioritizing brownfields for redevelopment in real estate portfolios can contribute to more sustainable regeneration and land management. Owners of large real estate and brownfield portfolios are challenged to allocate their limited resources to the development of the most critical or promising sites, in terms of time and cost efficiency. Authorities worried about the negative impacts of brownfields - in particular in the case of potential contamination - on the environment and society also need to prioritize their resources to those brownfields that most urgently deserve attention and intervention. Yet, numerous factors have to be considered for prioritizing actions, in particular when adhering to sustainability principles. Several multiple-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) approaches and tools have been suggested in order to support these actors in managing their brownfield portfolios. Based on lessons learned from the literature on success factors, sustainability assessment and MCDA approaches, researchers from a recent EU project have developed the web-based Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool (TBPT). It facilitates assessment and prioritization of a portfolio of sites on the basis of the probability of successful and sustainable regeneration or according to individually specified objectives. This paper introduces the challenges of brownfield portfolio management in general and reports about the application of the TBPT in five cases: practical test-uses by two large institutional land owners from Germany, a local and a regional administrative body from the Czech Republic, and an expert from a national environmental authority from Romania. Based on literature requirements for sustainability assessment tools and on the end-users feedbacks from the practical tests, we discuss the TBPTs strengths and weaknesses in order to inform and give recommendations for future development of prioritization tools.

Actor networks and the construction of applicable knowledge: the case of the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool

This article deals with experiences acquired during the process of developing the Timbre Brownfield Prioritization Tool (TBPT). Developing a decision support tool that takes into account the expectations and experiences of its potential users is similar to creating applicable knowledge by the joint action of scientists and heterogeneous actors. Actor network theory is used to explore the construction of this form of applicable knowledge as a process of actor network creation. Following the French sociologist Callon, networks are seen to be initiated and carried out by a group of scientists (tool developers) via four moments of translation, called problematization, interessement, enrolment and mobilization. Each step in the construction of the TBPT—from the initial research question to the final model—can be linked in retrospect to changing configurations of actor networks. Based on the experiences of the tool developers in the Czech Republic, Poland, Germany and Romania, we illustrate how these configurations varied across space and time. This contribution emphasizes the ability to correlate gains in knowledge with the more visible changes in the scope of actor networks in order to highlight achievements but also limitations in acquiring applicable knowledge.

Points of attention in designing tools for regional brownfield prioritization

The regeneration of brownfields has been increasingly recognized as a key instrument in sustainable land management, since free developable land (or so called greenfields) has become a scare and more expensive resource, especially in densely populated areas. However, the complexity of these sites requires considerable efforts to successfully complete their revitalization projects, thus requiring the development and application of appropriate tools to support decision makers in the selection of promising sites where efficiently allocate the limited financial resources. The design of effective prioritization tools is a complex process, which requires the analysis and consideration of critical points of attention (PoAs) which has been identified considering the state of the art in literature, and lessons learned from previous developments of regional brownfield (BF) prioritization processes, frameworks and tools. Accordingly, we identified 5 PoAs, namely 1) Assessing end user needs and orientation discussions, 2) Availability and quality of the data needed for the BF prioritization tool, 3) Communication and stakeholder engagement 4) Drivers of regeneration success, and 5) Financing and application costs. To deepen and collate the most recent knowledge on the topics from scientists and practitioners, we organized a focus group discussion within a special session at the AquaConSoil (ACS) conference 2017, where participants were asked to add their experience and thoughts to the discussion in order to identify the most significant and urgent points of attention in BF prioritization tool design. The result of this assessment is a comprehensive table (Table 2), which can support problem owners, investors, service providers, regulators, public and private land managers, decision makers etc. in the identification of the main aspects (sub-topics) to be considered and their relative influences and in the comprehension of the general patterns and challenges to be faced when dealing with the development of BF prioritization tools.

The expansion of coal mining in the depression areas – a way to development? - See more at: http://www.humangeographies.org.ro/81-toc#sthash.MADTV1Ic.dpuf

The coal has been mined in the Karvina area for more than 150 years. During the course of time mining areas were continuously extended at the expense of the settled areas. At the beginnings the mining was limited, but later, namely under conditions of centrally planned economy in the period between 1950s and 1980s, it was heavily intensified. Then, as a result of economic restructuring of the Czech Republic mining was reduced in the region to be re-developed in the last decade again. The expansion of coal mining has been continuously affecting the socio-economic structure of local popula- tion (huge working immigration, industrialisation, construction of mass housing for miners - miners dormitories, later housing estates etc., displacement of settlements), surrounding landscape (subsidence of terrain, undermining, hydrologi- cal changes and formation of artificial lakes, occurrence of plenty of post-mining brownfields after the reduction of mining etc.), but also contemporary outward, image and socio-spatial structure of cities (dominance housing in housing estates, effects of communists spatial urban planning etc.). Currently, negotiations about expansion of coal mining are in progress in this region, namely the city parts of Karvina (Stare Město) and Orlova (Výhoda) should be affected. In the introductory parts of this paper social, economical and environmental aspects of coal mining on the development of regions and con- nected problems are discussed and both cities are shortly presented. The questionnaire survey focused on perceptions of after-mining renewal and potential expansion of mining in the area of cities of Karvina and Orlova was conducted (n=1000). As the most important predictor that influences perception of mining and renewal, employment in mining com- panies has been identified. The higher education respondents achieved, the higher level of opposition against mining was manifested. The correlation was also found between the level of income and the agreement with expansion of mining. It can be concluded that employees of mining company, less educated population and people with higher income agreed with economic development of the city that is based on mining.

Interpreting regional and local diversities of the social acceptance of agricultural AD plants in the rural space of the Moravian-Silesian Region (Czech Republic)

AbstractnAgricultural anaerobic digestion plants have recently become a typical part of rural landscape in the Czech Republic due to massive governmental subvention programmes. Yet, their potential as an effective tool how to response to global climate changes at a local level is rather underused (maize used as a primary input mainly, usage of waste heat is limited, etc.). This situation is caused by misguided subvention policies. The aim of this contribution is first to analyse the agricultural anaerobic digestion plants in the rural space of the Moravian-Silesian Region, and second, to deepen the knowledge on the perception of the digestion plants among the population of municipalities in which such facility was constructed. A questionnaire survey has been carried out in three model municipalities (nxa0=xa0369) located in the Moravian-Silesian Region. Several recommendations and notes for public administration and potential investors concerning the location of future anaerobic digestion plants projects and settings of supportive programmes have been defined.

Přístupy ke studiu recyklace urbánního prostoru v České republice: Vývoj a perspektiva

Předkladaný přispěvek se zabýva problematikou recyklace urbannich prostor, konkretně opustěných a nevyuživaných prostor (brownfields) v Ceske republice. Regenerace těchto uzemi je důležita předevsim z důvodu jejich ekonomickeho, socialniho, kulturniho, symbolickeho, historickeho a environmentalniho významu. Dosavadni výzkumy recyklace urbannich prostor vsak do jiste miry opomiji studium samotneho procesu revitalizace. V teto souvislosti lze na recyklaci prostoru nahližet prostřednictvim konceptu sitě, konkretně skrze teorii akte siť (A-NT). Ta umožňuje nazirani recyklace uzemi jako mobilizaci akterske sitě. Recyklace takto pojateho prostoru pak nutně neznamena samotnou fyzickou přestavbu uzemi z jedne funkce využiti na jinou, ale vznik noveho siťoveho prostoru, respektive transformaci jednoho siťoveho prostoru v jiný. Cilem přispěvku je vyzdvihnuti hlavnich přinosů A-NT při studiu recyklace prostorů. Kromě teoretických východisek pro propojeni A-NT s procesem revitalizace uzemi přispěvek nabizi konkretni přiklad regenerace uzemi, kde aplikace A-NT rozkrýva siťovou strukturu procesu regenerace, ktera by dosavadnimi přistupy ke studiu brownfields zůstala skryta.