Vertical Greening Systems and Sustainable Cities

Abstract

Urban development is causing environmental and social concerns that are compromising human welfare and cities sustainability. New urban greening concepts are appearing in order to mitigate these problems in a sustainable and natural way. Vertical greening systems can be defined as structures which allow vegetation to spread over a building facade or interior wall. These systems are becoming popular though they are still evolving and more knowledge on some of their particular impacts is required. In the last five years, the number of studies published in the scientific literature on this topic, especially involving living walls, has significantly increased. This scientific interest has been corresponded with an increased and parallel attention by the general public. This work offers a broad description of the different systems and a comprehensive review of the particular benefits of these green infrastructures. Knowledge gaps and shortcomings have also been identified and discussed.