The city of Trelleborg lies between the Baltic Sea and the extensive Scanian agricultural landscape. Therefore, even a small waterbody such as Ståstorpsån is of high local importance for both biodiversity and recreation. Today the river mouth is surrounded by warehouses, gas stations and parking lots that serve the nearby harbor. The task was to remodel the mouth of Ståstorpsån to meet the ecological and social needs of the city.
In collaboration with an ecologist we proposed the reconstruction of the outlet from a narrow and steep channel to a more generous and broader river where the flowing water could find its own way out to sea. We literally plan to resurrect the floodplain and recreate habitats for wildlife and at the same time provide inspiring play landscape and shelter from strong sea winds for children and parents alike. The new “wildscape” could attract vulnerable coastal birds such as the little tern back to the site.
One of the bigger challenges in this project is constructing a park where natural processes continuously remodel the site. This requires a mindset that allows experimentation in maintenance, understanding from the public, choice of vegetation, materials and methods that permit occasional disturbance or sometimes even destruction by natural forces.