Brændkjær Climate Park - Reducing flooding and increasing liveability

The city of Kolding in Denmark has established a new climate park that protects it’s histroric centre from flooding whilst also creating new recreational spaces for residents, reducing carbon emissions, and enhancing biodiversity.

Kolding Municipality

2024

Koldling, Denmark

Blue Kolding, Bovia

Brandkjær climate park in the Danish town of Kolding provides flood protection and new recreational areas for 1100 local residents

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The city of Kolding in western Denmark is home to 90,000 people and has faced a significant challenge as heavy rainfall posed a severe flood risk to its historic city centre. A new climate park has therefore been established in the Brændkjær residential district of the city to help safeguard 1,100 apartments from flooding.

The climate park decouples surface water from the public sewers thereby freeing up capacity in the sewers and reducing incidences of flooding. The decoupled system also increases the water quality in surrounding waterways by ensuring there are fewer overflows where rainwater is mixed with wastewater. In addition, carbon emissions are reduced by 8.5 tonnes annually as rainwater no longer needs to be pumped or cleaned at the local water treatment plant.

Enhancing climate resilience and biodiversity

The project has entailed a strong focus on achieving synergies between climate adaptation, increased biodiversity, and attractive recreational spaces for residents. The large grasslands in Brændkjær have been transformed into varied areas with hollows, trenches, and hills of surplus land, planted with wild Danish herbs and grasses.

“Brændkjær Climate Park significantly reduces the flood-risk of the city centre, and the blue-green park design protects local biodiversity while also inviting for social interaction. We are very proud of the project and happy with the way Ramboll, as well as the other partners, have helped drive the process forward in a highly involving and collaborative spirit.”

Jette Nørgaard Jensen

Project Manager, BlueKolding

Improving liveability by engaging with residents

Local residents have been actively involved in the project’s development since its inception and have provided input that has shaped the park's recreational elements. These include a new seating area next to an existing pétanque court, a space for water play, and a rainwater drainage area that doubles as a small skatepark.

"It is a great pleasure to be able to design such an important project based on the concrete input of the residents. It really gives us something to work with and at the same time ensures local support for the project,"

Anders Mønster Hjernø

Head of Department for Water & Wastewater Networks, Ramboll

Børsen, Denmark's largest business media outlet, showcased Brændkjær Climate Park at its 2024 annual Sustainability Summit as a case to inspire action in the green transition.

Brændkjær Climate Park in numbers

: 1,100
Number of apartments protected against flooding

: 18.5
Number of hectares covered by the scheme – equal to 28 football pitches
: 8.5
Tonnes of CO₂ the park saves annually by avoiding rainwater treatment

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Brandkjær climate park in the Danish town of Kolding provides flood protection and new recreational areas for 1100 local residents

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Janne Møller
Senior Engineer
+45 51 61 17 57
Karsten Bech
Senior chief project manager
+45 51 61 58 73