Soluções baseadas na natureza com valoração monetária dos serviços ecossistêmicos: método para implantação de parque linear no planejamento urbano de São Roque (SP)

Abstract

Intensive urbanization has contributed to ecosystem fragmentation, the reduction of green areas, and the worsening of urban environmental problems, such as flooding, urban heat islands, air pollution, and the loss of spaces dedicated to leisure and social interaction. In this context, Nature-based Solutions (NbS) have become consolidated as strategies capable of contributing to the resolution of urban problems while integrating environmental conservation, climate adaptation, and sustainable urban planning. Whether combined with grey infrastructure or implemented independently, NbS provide benefits that go beyond the specific function for which they are designed, materialized through the provision of diverse Ecosystem Services (ES). Although widely used in the Global North, NbS are still expanding in the Global South. Methodological limitations remain regarding the assessment and valuation of these benefits in urban projects, which hinders the incorporation of NbS into decision-making processes and public policy formulation in urban planning. This research aimed to adapt a method to support the implementation of urban linear parks, based on the monetary valuation of ES associated with NbS. To this end, the municipality of São Roque/SP, Brazil, was adopted as the empirical context. The research was developed through a case study in the central area of the municipality, encompassing watercourses and their surroundings. As a methodological reference, a previously proposed and tested method was adapted by adjusting its original parameters to Brazilian environmental, territorial, and economic conditions. The method included the identification of NbS applicable to the linear park context, as well as the quantification and monetary valuation of five ES: reduction of surface runoff, air filtration and ventilation capacity, climate regulation, carbon sequestration, and recreation/leisure. The results showed that the implementation of the linear park has the potential to generate environmental, social, and economic benefits, with an estimated total valuation of approximately BRL 56.9 million per year. Among the assessed services, recreation and leisure represented the largest share, at approximately BRL 50.7 million per year. This value was calculated based on the population living within the park’s area of influence, proximity zones in relation to the park route and access points, and the application of a reference value per potential visit. The reduction of surface runoff was estimated at BRL 3.9 million per year, considering the capacity of vegetated and permeable areas to retain, infiltrate, or delay stormwater runoff, with valuation based on avoided costs related to urban drainage infrastructure. Air filtration and ventilation reached BRL 1.74 million per year, calculated from the vegetation’s capacity to retain particulate matter and associated with avoided public health costs. Carbon sequestration was valued at BRL 467 thousand per year, based on vegetated area and average CO₂ absorption coefficients, while climate regulation was estimated at BRL 60 thousand per year, considering thermal mitigation and potential electricity savings. As a limitation, it is acknowledged that the estimated values represent methodological approximations based on secondary data, reference coefficients, and value transfer criteria, and do not replace direct measurements, specific inventories, or executive analyses of implementation, maintenance, and management costs. Even so, monetary valuation makes it possible to establish an order of magnitude for the potential benefits of the linear park, bringing the results closer to the language used by decision-makers, public managers, and funding agencies. It is concluded that the adapted method has potential for application in the Brazilian context, contributing to the incorporation of ES and NbS into urban planning and providing technical support for investments in green infrastructure, in accordance with the principles of sustainable urban development and the Sustainable Development Goals.