ABSTRACT
Green infrastructure (GI) is a critical component of contemporary cities and includes remnant and created green spaces that can promote urban biodiversity and human wellbeing. Engineered GI includes green roofs, living walls, stormwater ponds, and green streetscapes, and these are integrated into the built environment where green space has been lost. As a result, engineered GI represents an opportunity to support biodiversity that has otherwise disappeared due to urbanisation. In this chapter, we synthesise the contribution of engineered GI to urban biodiversity, then we account for the hierarchical series of environmental filters that act on regional species pools and create local ecological communities to interpret design considerations, challenges, and opportunities. Ultimately, we conclude that engineered GI can support biodiversity, but this depends on the type, size, and design. Limitations on plant selection and substrate, when considering biodiversity habitat in urban design, means that engineered GI should be considered only as ‘complementary habitat’, used in addition to remnant green infrastructure types and existing green space conservation rather than as replacement for green space lost due to development.
