Essen is over a 1000 years old or at least people have inhabited the area around Essen for over a thousand years. Prior to industrialization it was predominantly an agricultural region, mainly of the subsistence kind. Many of the inhabitants cut peat for their fuel. In the 16 & 17th Cs much of the land was swampy with some element of mining occurring. Heavy mining really started in the 1830s to feed the heavy industry that was developing; entrepreneurs had moved into the region from places such a Belgium as they saw the potential for reducing costs of transporting coal to the sites where it would drive machinery. [history]
In fairly short order the degradation of the land, air pollution and poor working conditions began to cause illnesses amongst the workers and their families. Certainly white clothes could not be dried outside. By the 1960s things had got so bad that the Federal government demanded change; they were determined that blue skies would be seen over Essen again. Since 2012 more stringent regulations have been in place.
Now, on the bus trip, one could ‘experience the green transition’ and celebrate Essen as the 3rd city in Germany to gain the title of European Green City. In the lead up to the award, citizens could contribute ideas for greening their city or enhancing its sustainability. In 2022 the city will review their ‘green goals’ and will invite their citizens to provide feedback.
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| Planned garden suburb |
Some of the key things I learnt on the trip.
Cleaning up the waterways: most of the cities in the Ruhr region emptied their sewage straight into a number of rivers such as the Bern, which was captured into pipes under the city of Essen in order to take the effluent.
Since 1992 E4.5 billion has been invested in cleaning up the Emscher River, once the most polluted river in Europe, used for effluent disposal and industrial sludge – currently 2/3rd of Essen’s sewage is disposed into brooks that run into the Emscher. Early on in the industrial period its meanders were straightened out to make an efficient channel. By the 1970s it was declared ecologically dead and stank to high heaven, made worse by the constant damage done to underground pipes by the impact of mining so the process of converting a dead river to one that is ecologically alive will be along one. Many of the roads in the area are dug up with large pipes being put deep underground – reminiscent of Chch post quake. This article details the rehabilition really well.
When we cycled alongside the Emscher, to our noses it still stank like a sewer but locals tell us that it is much, much cleaner! The aim is to return the Emscher to a more natural state by 2020, with a similar process happening to other canalised rivers in the region over time. Approx. 26 river courses will be restored and greenways created along their banks.
The Ruhr river provided domestic water for Essen. Was dammed which created Baldeneysee which became recreation centre – now have water quality warning system for swimming health. [In English]
New industrialisation: As coal mining became more expensive in West Germany (well organised worker demanded decent condition & deeper seams) mines began to close. In 1963 13 mines closed and by 1968 only 5 mines left from the 23 of 1957. By 1970 only 4000 people employed in coal mining down from 480,000 of 1950. The last mine in the area will close in 2018. On top of the coal crisis was the steel crisis of the 1970s – the polluting industries were in decline. Now focused on green energy with about 13000 people involved presently in green energy initiatives.
The Thyssen Krupp development in Essen is vast. During WW1 and the Nazi period the Krupps complex was predominantly an arms manufacturing plant. The whole area has been redeveloped for mixed use with an open-plan campus dedicated to high tech businesses. Across 900m2 area there are numerous recreational facilities and a lake. In another part of Essen a 13ha green development will include a mix of sustainable buildings in a green belt interspersed with water features. This Scientific American article captures the transformation really well.
Re-purposing of old buildings: the Colosseum Theater was a steel factory with 2000+ employees, post WWII it became an AEG factory until 1987. In 1989 it was transformed into a municipal theatre. The Alt Synagogue, badly damaged during Kristallnicht/destroyed in 1938 but later rebuilt to house an art and discussion centre plus a cafe.
The Zollverein Park was only briefly visited on the bus tour as it is a tour on its own! Green electric buses take visitors all round the park on a guided tour.
In south Essen they have built new cultural centres like the Folkwang Museum each linked by quality p/t and cycleways.
Some other sites also repurposed which this journalist wrote about in 2015.
Cycleways: a high-speed cycle way is being developed along an old railway, between Dortmund to Essen, linking 10 city centres & 6 tertiary institutions along its route. One section has been opened and runs right next to a current rail corridor. The route must be at least 4m wide, have a white line down the centre and be smooth gradient with good directional, illuminated signage along the way. It will be cleaned regularly to ensure cyclist safety.
See pedaling-nowhere and The Guardian's revolutionise-daily-commute and Yale Environment
With the rebuild of much of the Ruhr’s infrastructure post WWII communication routes were designed that meet the needs of cars, trucks and rail hence the dominance of vehicular transport in the region, more than in many other areas of Germany. A process of re-thinking means changing the balance toward p/t and cycling. At present 50% of all journeys are by car but city authorities aim to reduce that to 25% by 2022; this is the challenge of traffic planning …. Build the infrastructure to make p/t and cycling efficient and pleasurable and people will choose those options. [See New Geography comentary]
Subsidence: this is a problem in many part of the Ruhr due to underground mining. One of the churches, built in the art nouveaux style, we passed had to be renovated twice in the 1970s to stop it sinking any further. When a number of mines closed the 1960s over 2000 people lost their jobs & little was initially done to maintain the empty caverns to prevent collapse.
Parks & green areas; 19thC mayor realised area needed parks to compensate for land lost to mining. Also encoruaged allotment system - vital to supply workers with fresh food. Supported by industrialists 110 allotment assoc in Essen 45% of the greater Essen area is farmland, parks & forests. There are approx 70 farms within the greater Essen area catering directly for the city.
The city authorities have created 59 ‘green island’ (really large planting boxes) within the city centre and a number of brown field sites are being converted to public parks. Helena Park, a 25H area, was once an old mine site but now serves a residential area and provides ecological services. Along the cycleway and new roadways swales and retention ponds have been constructed to reduce flooding risk. Helena Park, a 25ha park serving a residential area and providing ecological services for a wider area. Mining was the dominant activity on the watershed hills which divided the Emsher from the Ruhr, now with more parkland less water is lost & it is somewhat cleaner when it enters the system. Here's WWF's take on the parkland.
Gruga Park, a 58,000m2 area, was developed in the 1960s to showcase Essen with a botanical garden at its heart and other facilities such as a convention centre, an enviro education centre, festival/events centre. In 2012 they have also developed a biomass plant which now heats all the buildings in the park using up the woodchip collected from the park – a closed loop process. In 2013 a 400m2 education garden plot developed so schools can visit city council keen to encourage children & young people in gardening to encourage the growing of food & respect for natural cycles.
Litter: through crowd sourcing, city authorities developed 240 slogans to encourage/remind citizens not to litter, to do the right thing. The people of Essen got behind the idea ….. Many slogans were quite amusing.
- Citizen initiatives, such as Transition Town Essen & edible gardens, are also important elements in greening Essen. [See this Masters Thesis for ddetailed analysis]
In 2018 Milligen will be the European Green Capital. Previous capitals have been Nantes, Bristol & Bremen
Other stories: Citiscope.org, Our World
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