Ensemble and master plan

Biological corridor

Emergingecological corridor · green connector · urban biological corridor · corredor biológico (Spanish)

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It is a continuous strip of vegetation and water, often a river with its riparian forest, that links parks, forests and protected areas across farms, developments and cities.

Solves

What it solves

It lets birds, mammals, insects and seeds move between patches of habitat that the city left isolated. Within a development it also gives shade, cools the air, protects the banks and slows runoff.

Today

Before placing buildings, identify rivers, streams and forest patches and keep them as a continuous green spine, without cutting it with streets or blank walls. Plant native species in several layers and provide a wildlife crossing where a road must cross it.

Common mistake

Leaving greenery in scattered scraps or turning the riverbank into a backyard with walls, fill and bright lights that drive wildlife away.

Tomorrow

Each development can contribute its stretch to a larger network if its green strip lines up with the neighbor’s. Schools and neighbors can record the birds and animals that use it and look after the connection together, also at night with little light.

Fact A 2019 count put the number of official biological corridors in Costa Rica at 51, covering about 34% of the mainland territory.

Where it comes from

1Paseo Pantera and Mesoamerican Biological Corridor from Mexico to Panama, 1997
The idea of linking the region’s protected areas, proposed in the late 1980s, was endorsed by the Central American presidents in 1997.
2National Biological Corridors Program Costa Rica, 2006
A decree created the program and entrusted its implementation to the National System of Conservation Areas.
3Interurban biological corridors Greater Metropolitan Area, Costa Rica, 2017
A decree recognized corridors that connect rivers, parks and tree-lined streets within the city, such as those of the María Aguilar and Torres rivers.

Masters

Ian McHarg The Woodlands, Texas, United States, 1973
He planned a new town based on its soil, forest and streams, with natural drainage and a continuous system of open spaces that gives it structure. He teaches how to lay out the living first and the built afterward.

Appears in the routes

Sources

Also in Ensemble and master plan

Diagrams and texts by LDB Arquitectura. They are shared under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows them to be used and adapted with credit to the source.