Development of biodiversity, bioreceptivity and bioinspired water capture around living lab P Olympos

Abstract

The past three years biodiversity and bioreceptivity have been studied in the gabion surrounding living lab P Olympos. Using quadrat sampling and the Shannon biodiversity index it has been found that since the start of the project in 2021 the plots surrounding the gabion have steadily increased in bioreceptivity. While the surrounding plots have thrived, the goal of having green walls in the gabion has been less successful. Bacteria such as Nostoc punctiforme have been shown to be present on the gabion and able to provide an extracellular polymeric substrate to support further succession, environmental conditions like heat, insufficient water and wind seem to be too much of a challenge to overcome in the timeframe the gabion has been given. To supplement the insufficient amount of water that gets into the gabion, water capture strategies from nature have been emulated. Mechanisms like radiative cooling, hydrophilic nanostructures and clearance of nucleation zones are all important tools to passively capture water from the atmosphere. However, the natural amount of rain present in the Netherlands exceeds the amount of water that could be captured using this method. Thus, rain capture and redistribution should be used a simpler alternative than complex bio inspired tools.