“The most natural way to reform the hydrological system” – Holcim Awards Jury

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    Project entry 2008 Asia Pacific - "Heart of Suzhou Creek ecosystem revitalization, Shanghai, China": Theory behind landscape.

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    Holcim Awards "Next Generation" 2008 1st prize: Boon Ting Teo for “Heart of Suzhou Creek ecosystem revitalization, Shanghai, China”.

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    Holcim Awards "Next Generation" 2008 1st (l-r): Member of jury, Hansjürg Leibundgut congratulates winner Boon Ting Teo for “Heart of Suzhou Creek ecosystem revitalization, Shanghai, China”.

This project addresses two very common and serious problems in rapidly-growing cities: flooding and water pollution. Suzhou Creek in Shanghai belongs to one of the most polluted stretches of water in the world. Its flow direction isn’t constant due to the periodical variations of the sea level which leads to intermittent flooding in wide parts of Shanghai. The visionary idea regarding the control of the water flow and its pollution is not to rely on traditional protective structures and water purification processes, but to divert the polluted water into a landscaped texture which allows control of the varying water level and reduces pollution by phytoremediation process. 

Last updated: June 05, 2008 Shanghai, China

The cleaned water will seep away and nourish the ground water reservoir of Shanghai and therefore reduce the frequency of ground resettlement due to variance in the water table under the city. The river flow as well as the contaminants of the water will be controlled by computational fluid dynamics simulation. The jury commended this proposal because its smart concept is unique and uses the most natural way to reform the hydrological system of Shanghai.