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Multifunctional Landscapes for Urban Flood Management – A Study with Reference to the Kotte Wetland

Denipitiya, D. N. / Udalamaththa, S.

Abstract Climate change, combined with the lack of drainage caused by urbanization contributes greatly to flooding in urban areas. With the intensification of urban floods in recent years posing a challenge to the development of cities, research is being carried out to focus on providing solutions for this global issue. Early research has concluded that the loss of wetlands which are natural flood detention areas has a notable effect on aggravating floods. Hence, it is evident that emphasis needs to be given to shifting to a landscape architectural approach of blue and green infrastructure, focusing on a multifunctional solution of integrating the landscape elements of land, wetland and water with environmental, social and economic benefits. Due to the socio-economical significance of the Colombo city, flooding is considered a significant hinderance for the city’s development. Several projects carried out around the Kotte marsh focusing on the Diyawanna Oya in Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte have attempted to address this issue through multifunctional landscape developments. This research investigates the effectiveness of these multifunctional spaces for flood management. The literature review identifies multifunctional landscape as the most significant solution with several principles and concepts under research. Through this, a theoretical framework is formed to measure the effectiveness of selected multifunctional landscapes. According to this study, multifunctional landscapes emphasize on sustainable water management in parallel to social responsiveness with the aim of making cities resilient to floods. The research was carried out through field studies, photographic surveys and mapping. It was identified that the landscape developments around the Kotte wetland included landscape elements which used materials and technology to create effective multifunctional spaces. However, it was concluded that the continuous decrease in natural flood detention would affect the large-scale flood resilience of the landscape in the long run.