The intervention was developed as a moment of territorial reconfiguration of the Alcântara Valley where the hillside meets the station’s roof garden. The restructuring between the two previously disconnected slopes towards a coherent identity relied on integration of the water treatment station. Further downstream, this breach was exacerbated by urban development and transformation of the western slope. We refer to landscape regeneration to reclaim lost continuities, both visually and ecologically. The farming history of Alcântara Valley is reinterpreted by the reconstruction of patterned plots below the ring road on the hillside. The bioengineering of the slope’s soil provides a suitable load-bearing groundcover rich in floristic and visual diversity. This action is fundamental for the stabilisation of the hillside and, consequently, for its biological reactivation and full integration with the urban infrastructure.
Alcântara Wastewater Treatment Plant
Project Overview
- Start Date: 01.2005
- End Date: 01.2011
- Theme: Environmental Regeneration, Landscape Infrastructure
- Area: 8,4 ha
- Client: SimTejo S.A.
- Location: Lisboa, Portugal
- Authors: João Nunes, Carlos Ribas
- Collaborators: Carla Silva, Clara Guedes, Joana Barreto, Mariana Sargo, Miguel Coelho de Sousa, Nuno Mota, Sara Neves
- Architecture: Manuel Aires Mateus, Frederico Valsassina (FVA)