NbS Urban Resilience in Catania and Ferla

Italy’s National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) identifies Sicily as a priority region for climate resilience due to the increasing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, including Medicanes. In the last two decades, storms with return periods of up to 50 years have occurred repeatedly, overwhelming existing grey infrastructure and causing flooding, economic losses, and safety risks, particularly in dense urban areas.

CARDIMED DEMO4 responds to these challenges through two complementary sub-DEMOs implemented in different Sicilian contexts:

• sub-DEMO4.1 (Catania) focuses on urban flood risk reduction through sustainable urban drainage systems. Bioretention cells (rain gardens), swale, and infiltration shafts are integrated into existing green spaces along major roads and roundabouts, intercepting, retaining, and infiltrating stormwater runoff across approximately 4,400 m² of public urban land.
• sub-DEMO4.2 (Ferla) addresses water scarcity in a small and isolated community by installing a wall-based green façade at a primary school. The system treats greywater from washbasins and reuses it for toilet flushing, reducing potable water consumption while enhancing the building’s environmental performance.

Together, these interventions demonstrate how NbS can complement and upgrade grey infrastructure, improving stormwater management, water reuse, and climate resilience across diverse urban and peri-urban settings in Sicily.