The Benefits of Urban Green Spaces

Urban green spaces (UGSs) play a remarkable role to reduce bad consequences of the rapid rate of urbanization. They have very important part in creating the space of cities because quality of an urban is a result of balanced distribution between buildings, transport infrastructure and green spaces.

According to the IPCC, 70% of global greenhouse gas emissions come from urban areas. With pollution, heat waves and shrinking biodiversity, cities have become the symptom of a world that is running out of steam, reflecting development that is disconnected from the living world. 

While more than half of the world's population live in cities, it is becoming urgent to rethink urban planning, to reintegrate plants, to recreate a natural balance. Urban forest represents a tremendous opportunity to go beyond our conception of today's city to build the city of tomorrow

The Impacts of Cities without Forests 

Cities and forests have almost always been seen as two opposites: a wild world, governed by natural laws, versus a universe shaped and controlled by mankind. Cities have become one of the main drivers of climate change this antagonistic vision is reaching its limits. 

By 2050, there will be between 6 and 7 billion city-dwellers on the planet, for instance nearly 70% of the world's population. In France, this percentage will soon reach 80%. Little by little, the size of the cities is increasing and metropolises with more than one million inhabitants are multiplying. The rapid expansion of cities has taken place at the expense of ecosystems. 

Biodiversity and Green Network

Urban trees and shrubs are important biodiversity support systems for the fauna and flora. Flowers, fruits, twigs, dead wood or even tree hollows represent a source of food for pollinating insects, birds, amphibians and small mammals that populate our cities, while providing them with numerous shelters.

Improving the urban forest makes it possible to create more biological corridors, forming green network. The green network concept, aims to link different reservoirs of biodiversity together in an uninterrupted area. Animals need to circulate to ensure their biological cycles and to protect themselves from predators; the urban forest thus facilitates their movements in cities, which are a very hostile environment for wildlife. 

The presence of trees in the city also contributes to recreate a living soil, thanks to the dead leaves which decompose into humus and thereby strengthen the life of micro-organisms in the soil. 

Transforming Urbanity with Forests and Urban Cooling

Faced with such a reality, making cities greener represents a leading solution for initiating the socio-environmental transition of cities. Developing cities’ tree resources contributes to creating a sustainable and resilient urban model. The urban forest acts directly on the climate of cities by refreshing the surrounding air. Placed in strategic locations, trees can lower the temperature by 2°C to 8°C and reduce air conditioning needs by 30% when planted around buildings.

 A tree can absorb up to 80% of the sun’s rays. The shade provided by its foliage prevents concrete infrastructures from storing too much heat during the day. Evapotranspiration, a mature tree produces up to 450 litres of water in the form of water vapour, for instance the equivalent of 5 air conditioners running for 20 hours, which creates a cooler microclimate around it. 

According to the study published in The Lancet at the beginning of 2023, doubling the plant cover of European cities to reach 30% of surface area being tree-covered - would make it possible to cool city summers by 0.4°C on average and to avoid heat islands. It is important to remember that when it comes to global warming, every tenth of a degree counts.

The Potential for the Development and Promotion of Green Space

Urban green spaces in particular have long been recognized as the most critical environmental resource in an urban ecosystem. Urban green spaces also have become widely recognized as an important component of the infrastructure in urban areas.

In the era of modernization, urban green spaces (UGSs) are attracting increasing attention in smart city (SC) development. Much of the population has moved toward cities in recent decades. In Europe and North America, currently nearly two-thirds of the population resides in cities, and it is predicted that, by 2050, two-thirds of the world’s population will live in cities.

Urbanization is certainly one of the greatest changes that humanity has experienced.

The city of Graz in Austria, with an approximate population of 330,000 is rapidly expanding. Its infrastructure and housing must mirror this trend, and significant building activity is underway in many parts of the city. 

Development

While the consequences of urbanization can no longer be concealed, the urban forest is a window to the city of tomorrow. Urban forests provide us with the opportunity to rethink urban planning, to create alliances between mineral and green spaces, to build bridges that connect the city with the countryside. Investments in urban forests currently accounts for only 1.3% of major French cities budget. 

To increase this figure and reduce the environmental footprint of cities, public and private stakeholders need to work together. In partnership with many municipalities and companies in France and Europe, Reforest' Action is playing a key role in developing more sustainable and liveable cities. 

Conclusion

The lack of plants in the city is as much a public health problem as a question of well-being. While the presence of green or wooded spaces in the city is beneficial for mental health and stress reduction, their absence generates a host of mood-altering effects. This is why, in 2020, after difficult periods of lockdowns, 8 out of 10 French people said that making cities greener should be a priority.