Seasonality of chrysophyte cyst and diatom assemblages in varved Lake Nautajärvi – implications for palaeolimnological studies

Peer reviewe

Characterization of sedimentary depositional environments for land use and urban planning in Espoo, Finland

AbstractThe capital region of Finland is growing rapidly and into areas with challenging construction conditions such as deep fine-grained sediments. In the coastal city of Espoo, present land use is mainly focused in the southern and central parts, which were submerged by the Baltic Sea during the early and mid-Holocene. These areas have experienced saline and brackish water phases during the history of the Baltic Sea Basin. The deposition environments of the presently studied onshore areas are an analogue for the present day offshore Baltic Sea sedimentation settings for fine-grained material. The results from Baltic Sea studies have demonstrated that the seabed topography has a significant role in the deposition of sediments and their properties. In this study, paleotopographic models were created for the ancient Baltic Sea Basin in the Espoo area 1) after deglaciation and 2) during the Litorina transgression and classified into bathymetric (terrain) zones and structures. Topographic classification was combined with the water depth of the Litorina stage, the thickness of fine-grained deposits and wind fetch to establish the overall characteristics of sedimentary environments in the coastal area. Fine-grained sediments can be found mainly in depressions that are classified here as broad, narrow or local. The study found the most challenging environments for construction purposes in sheltered narrow depressions that contain thick layers of fine-grained sediments deposited during the Litorina transgression. These are mainly located in the southern and central parts of Espoo. Minor deep canyons were also found in the northern parts of Espoo. This study provides new prior knowledge for urban planning and construction design in Espoo. The methodology could be applied to other Baltic Sea coastal cities and areas with fine-grained sediments.</p

Characterization of sedimentary depositional environments for land use and urban planning in Espoo, Finland

Funding Information: This study was funded by the Geological Survey of Finland and the K.H. Renlund Foundation. The source data used in the analyses were produced by the City of Espoo. Monica Löfman is thanked for valuable comments on the manuscript. Professor Jussi Leveinen and an anonymous reviewer provided valuable comments that improved the content of the manuscript. Publisher Copyright: © 2021, Geological Society of Finland. All rights reserved.The capital region of Finland is growing rapidly and into areas with challenging construction conditions such as deep fine-grained sediments. In the coastal city of Espoo, present land use is mainly focused in the southern and central parts, which were submerged by the Baltic Sea during the early and mid-Holocene. These areas have experienced saline and brackish water phases during the history of the Baltic Sea Basin. The deposition environments of the presently studied onshore areas are an analogue for the present day offshore Baltic Sea sedimentation settings for fine-grained material. The results from Baltic Sea studies have demonstrated that the seabed topography has a significant role in the deposition of sediments and their properties. In this study, paleotopographic models were created for the ancient Baltic Sea Basin in the Espoo area 1) after deglaciation and 2) during the Litorina transgression and classified into bathymetric (terrain) zones and structures. Topographic classification was combined with the water depth of the Litorina stage, the thickness of fine-grained deposits and wind fetch to establish the overall characteristics of sedimentary environments in the coastal area. Fine-grained sediments can be found mainly in depressions that are classified here as broad, narrow or local. The study found the most challenging environments for construction purposes in sheltered narrow depressions that contain thick layers of fine-grained sediments deposited during the Litorina transgression. These are mainly located in the southern and central parts of Espoo. Minor deep canyons were also found in the northern parts of Espoo. This study provides new prior knowledge for urban planning and construction design in Espoo. The methodology could be applied to other Baltic Sea coastal cities and areas with fine-grained sediments.Peer reviewe

Statistical approach to identify variables predicting sulphide clay occurrence in southern Finland

Acid sulphate soil and sulphide-bearing sediments cause various challenges in construction projects and land use planning, as well as harmful environmental effects. Fine-grained sulphide sediments were mainly formed in coastal areas during the Litorina Sea water phase at approximately 7000 BP in the capital region of Finland, but not all these sediments contain sulphide clay. In this study, environmental and material property variables related to the depositional conditions of sulphide clay were selected for statistical analyses to find their association with the occurrence of sulphide. The datasets consisted of sulphide investigations by the City of Espoo, the City of Helsinki, and the Geological Survey of Finland. Statistically significant associations were found in the study area between the occurrence of sulphide and enumerative variables (i.e., sediment organic content, total clay depth, topographic class in the Litorina Sea phase, and water depth) in the Litorina Sea phase. Locations where sulphide clayis especially likely to occur consist of organic-rich (≥ 2%) thick clay (≥ 15 m) deposits in a topographically narrow depression with deep Litorina water (≥ 30 m), or where there is a moderate depth clay (3–5 m) in a local depression with shallow Litorina water (10–20 m). The best individual predictor for sulphide clay occurrence in the study area was found to be the sediment organic content, and, together with sediment water content, these variables very accurately predicted the occurrence of sulphide clay. In addition, clay depth is a very good predictor and, together with the topographic class narrow depression and the Litorina water depth or current elevation, can be used to predict sulphide occurrence.Peer reviewe

Kestävyyttä ja elinvoimaymmärrystä kaupunkiseuduille : Maankäytön, asumisen, liikenteen ja elinkeinojen yhteensovittava suunnittelu

Tämä loppuraportti pohjautuu Elinvoimaiset kaupunkiseudut -hankekokonaisuuteen, jota koordinoi MAL-verkosto. Hankekonsortion muodostivat MAL-verkosto, Suomen ympäristökeskus (Syke) ja Tampereen yliopisto. Hankekokonaisuus jakautui neljään osahankkeeseen: Asemanseutujen kehittäminen elinkeinoyhteistyössä, Kestävän yhdyskuntarakenteen suunnittelu ennakoivana elinvoimatyönä, Asumisen ennakointi ja monipaikkaistuminen sekä Kaupunkiseutusuunnittelun uudet mallit. Hankkeen tavoitteena oli edistää elinvoimanäkökulmaa kaupunkiseutujen maankäytön, asumisen ja liikenteen (MAL) suunnittelussa. Hankkeella vahvistettiin elinkeinoelämän sekä MAL-suunnittelijoiden elinvoimaymmärrystä ja vuoropuhelua sekä laajemmin kaupunkiseutujen MALPE-suunnittelun (maankäyttö + asuminen + liikenne + palvelut + elinkeinot) strategista elinvoimaosaamista. Elinkeinojen ja MAL-suunnittelun yhteensovittaminen voi esimerkiksi lisätä ja monipuolistaa työpaikkatarjontaa, parantaa liikenteen sujuvuutta ja työpaikkojen saavutettavuutta kestävillä kulkumuodoilla, parantaa asunto- ja palvelutarpeiden ennakointia, vähentää rakennuskannan ja infran vajaakäyttöä sekä tasapainottaa kaupunkiseudun eri alueiden kehitystä. Toimialojen tilalliset ja maankäytölliset erityispiirteet ovat erilaisia. Ne voidaan jakaa pääpiirteissään kolmeen luokkaan: teollisiin ja tilaa vaativiin, keskustahakuisiin ja toimistointensiivisiin sekä elämystalouteen. Seudullinen yhteistyö, maankäyttö- ja elinkeinotyön yhteensovittaminen ja strateginen suunnittelu ovat avainasemassa elinkeinojen kehittämisessä ja teollisen vihreän siirtymän onnistumisessa kaupunkiseuduilla. Työpaikka-alueiden kehittämisessä keskeisiä kysymyksiä ovat olemassa olevan rakenteen hyödyntäminen, työpaikka-alueiden uudistuminen ja toimiva sijoittuminen sekä vihreän siirtymän hankkeiden tarpeisiin vastaaminen. Asuin- ja työpaikkojen sijainnin muutokset ovat heikentäneet edellytyksiä kulkea työmatkat jalan, pyörällä tai joukkoliikenteellä. Kestävien kulkutapojen edistämistoimet on oleellista suunnata eri tavoin kaupunkirakenteen eri osiin. Kaupunkiseutujen raidevetoista kehitystä edistetään muun muassa asemanseutujen kehittämisellä kuntien, valtion ja yksityisten toimijoiden yhteistyönä. Autovyöhykkeen kasvun taittaminen edellyttää muutosta nykyiseen väestönkehityksen ja asuinrakentamisen trendiin. Asuntokantatarpeen ennakointiin liittyy haasteita. Epävarmuutta aiheuttavat itse väestön- ja muuttoliikkeen kehityksen lisäksi asuntokuntien määrän kehitys, tyhjien asuntojen todellinen käyttö ja asutuspotentiaali sekä monipaikkaisen asumisen vaikutus asuntotarpeeseen. Monipaikkaisella asumisella on merkittäviä taloudellisia, sosiaalisia ja ympäristöön sekä rakennettuun ympäristöön liittyviä vaikutuksia. Vapaaehtoinen kaupunkiseutusuunnittelu kannustaa asettamaan kaupunkiseututasoisia tavoitteita ja edistää seudullista ajattelua.Hållbarhet och livskraftsförståelse för stadsregioner Denna slutrapport är baserad på projektet Livskraftiga stadsregioner, som koordinerades av MAL-nätverket. Projektkonsortiet bestod av MAL-nätverket, Finlands miljöcentral (Syke) och Tammerfors universitet. Projektet delades upp i fyra delprojekt: Utveckling av stationsområden i samarbete med näringslivet, Planering för en hållbar samhällsstruktur som proaktiv livskraftsarbete, Bostadsförutsägelse och multilokalt boende samt Nya modeller för stadsregionplanering. Syftet med projektet var att främja livskraftsperspektiv inom markanvändning, boende och trafikplanering (MAL) av stadsregioner. Projektet stärkte förståelsen och dialogen mellan näringslivet och MAL-planerare samt mer allmänt den strategiska livskraftsexpertisen inom MALPE-planeringen (markanvändning + boende + trafik + service + näringar) av stadsregioner. Att samordna näringsliv och MAL-planering kan exempelvis öka och diversifiera jobbmöjligheterna, förbättra trafikflödet och tillgängligheten till jobb genom hållbara transportmedel, förbättra förutseendet av bostads- och servicebehov, minska underutnyttjande av byggnader och infrastruktur samt balansera utvecklingen av olika områden inom stadsregionen. De rumsliga och markanvändningsmässiga egenskaperna hos olika branscher varierar. De kan grovt kategoriseras i tre typer: industriella och platsintensiva, centralt belägna och kontorsintensiva samt upplevelseekonomi. Regionalt samarbete, samordning av markanvändning och ekonomisk utveckling samt strategisk planering är avgörande för branschers utveckling och framgång för den industriella gröna övergången i stadsregioner. Nyckelfrågor inom utvecklingen av arbetsområden inkluderar att utnyttja befintliga strukturer, vitalisera arbetsområden, säkerställa fungerande platser och möta behoven av gröna övergångsprojekt. Förändringar i bostads- och arbetsplatslägen har gjort det svårare att pendla till fots, med cykel eller med kollektivtrafik. Insatser för att främja hållbara transportsätt behöver riktas olika över olika delar av stadens struktur. Utvecklingen av stadsregioner med fokus på spårtrafik främjas bland annat genom utveckling av stationsområden i samarbete mellan kommuner, staten och privata aktörer. Att bromsa tillväxten av bilzonen kräver en förändring av nuvarande befolknings- och bostadstrender. Det finns utmaningar med att förutse bostadsbehov. Osäkerhet uppstår från befolknings- och migrationstrender, liksom utvecklingen av antalet hushåll, den faktiska användningen av vakanta bostäder och potential till permanentboende, och effekterna av multilokalt boende på bostadsbehoven. Multilokalt boende har betydande ekonomiska, sociala, miljömässiga och byggrelaterade effekter. Frivillig stadsregionplanering uppmuntrar till att fastställa mål på stadsregionnivå och främjar regionalt tänkande.Sustainability and Vitality Understanding for City Regions This final report is based on the Vital City Regions -project, led by the MAL Network. The project consortium consisted of the MAL Network, Finnish Environment Institute (Syke), and Tampere University. The project was divided into four sub-projects: Development of station areas through business cooperation, Planning for sustainable urban structure as proactive vitality work, Housing foresight and multilocal living, and New models for city-regional planning. The aim of the project was to promote vitality perspectives in the land use, housing, and transportation (MAL) planning of city regions. The project strengthened the understanding and dialogue between business life and MAL planners, as well as, more broadly, the strategic vitality expertise in the MALPE planning (land use + housing + transportation + services + economic development) of city regions. Aligning businesses and MAL planning can, for example, increase and diversify job opportunities, improve traffic flow and accessibility of jobs through sustainable modes of transportation, enhance anticipation of housing and service needs, reduce underutilization of building stock and infrastructure, and balance the development of different areas within the urban region. The spatial and land use characteristics of different business sectors vary. They can be broadly categorized into three types: industrial and space-intensive, centrally located and office-intensive, and experience economy. Regional cooperation, coordination of land use and economic development, and strategic planning are crucial for the development of businesses and the success of the industrial green transition in city regions. Key issues in the development of workplace areas include utilizing existing structures, revitalizing workplace areas, and ensuring functional locations that meet the needs of green transition projects. Changes in the location of residences and workplaces have made it more difficult to commute on foot, by bicycle, or by public transportation. Efforts to promote sustainable modes of transportation need to be directed differently across various parts of the urban structure. Rail-based development of urban regions is promoted, among other things, by the development of station areas through cooperation between municipalities, the state, and private actors. Curbing car-dependent sprawl requires a shift from current population and housing trends. There are challenges related to forecasting housing needs. Uncertainties arise from population and migration trends, as well as the development of the number of households, the actual use of vacant housing, housing potential, and the impact of multilocal living on housing needs. Multilocal living has significant economic, social, environmental, and built environment-related impacts. Voluntary city-regional planning encourages setting urban region-level objectives and promotes regional thinking