PRACTICE OF WATER USE IN CITIES

The development of many cities has historically been linked to water. Coastal areas are one of the most attractive areas in cities, villages, and settlements: promenades, beaches, and fishing give people rest, the joy of communicating with nature, and energize them. Every year, the recreational load on coastal areas in urban and suburban areas is increasing, land is being cleared for summer cottages in coastal protection strips, and pollution by municipal and industrial runoff is increasing due to a decrease in the level of water treatment. The consequences of these negative processes are the degradation of coastal areas, pollution of water areas, and the death of river ecosystems. The state of the Dnipro ecosystem, like many rivers and their coastal areas, requires effective solutions to improve the natural state, revitalization, and reduce anthropogenic pressure to a minimum, which will trigger self-recovery mechanisms of the river ecological system.  The purpose of this publication is to draw attention to the importance of revitalization of water areas and coastal areas in urbanized cities. The article examines the practice of water use in cities. Special attention is paid to the water objects of Kyiv, the state of the Dnipro River in the capital of Ukraine. Conclusions are made regarding the necessity of revitalization of river ecosystems in an urbanized environment. Dnipro has always been an important drinking resource for Kyiv. The coast of the Dnieper River along Podil — the Podil embankment — is a place that performed different functions in different periods of development. This has resulted in a strong contrast in land uses, common practices, users, architecture and a wide range of issues and challenges. Determination and prioritization of these challenges depend on the vision of further development of the territory. Today, the Dnipro Embankment is an active public space in Kyiv. The regeneration project of the Podil embankment — the area stretching from Postova Square to the Gavani industrial zone along the Dnipro River — was initiated by a team of "Agents of Change" specialists in the spring of 2019 with the vision of "Available, active and clean embankment. The process of revitalization of coastal areas, which have degraded due to the burden of industrial enterprises, warehouses, and landfills, is gaining momentum. Successful embankment revitalization projects have common features: Return of the river to its natural state, restoration of flora and fauna. Filling the embankment with new people-oriented functions. In order to provide citizens with access to water, variability in walking routes and ways of spending leisure time, it is necessary to combine separate spaces into a continuous barrier-free environment and provide it with comfortable access from the city. The territory of the Dnipro embankment needs further profile studies to successfully overcome the challenges. The most important of them should be the study of the Dnipro ecosystem, because the issue of sustainable water purification is the most complex and complex.