A well-planted green space will also help prevent nutrient loss in the soil which can still occur in poorly planted spaces. The important role of urban green spaces is recognized both in the character and the life they bring to towns and cities around the world Malek Mariapan and Shariff Unknown.
These many benefits cover various areas such as natural conservation which increases biodiversity of flora and fauna affecting urban climate by reduction of air temperature and urban heat islands.
Benefits of urban green space. Urban development projects can be costly and have health impacts. The main thesis of this chapter therefore is as follows. Urban green space which is typically defined as vegetated open areas such as parks gardens playgrounds and forests 5 has been considered increasingly essential to residents mental health.
Numerous studies show the beneficial effects of urban green on people such as reducing stress decreasing respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and improving concentration. Urban green spaces can give enormous benefits to the neighborhood and community by improving health social well-being and enhancing enjoyment of local environment. Benefits of Urban Green Space BUGS is an EU research project aiming at developing a methodology to assess the impact of green space and settlement patterns on urban environmental quality and social well-being and to formulate recommendations regarding the use of green space as a design tool in urban planning strategies.
Urban green spaces UGS seem as the most essential asset that could help cities to mitigate the adverse effects of rapid urbanization and urban sprawl in a sustainable way. Similarly the use of green spaces in all urban areas is a powerful tool for scientific knowledge and experimentation. Whilst urbanization clearly has health impacts there is uncertainty as to whether the purported health benefits of green spaces such as parks and playing fields are an urban myth or fact.
Researchers are still working out exactly why green space is so beneficial but it clearly provides health benefits across the population. The paper explores social benefits of urban green space which includes recreational opportunities aesthetic enjoyments adjusting psychological wellbeing and physical health enhancing social ties and providing educational opportunities. Green spaces can reduce the ambient temperature of cities by 1C thus reducing the urban heat island and harmful city smog.
To provide sufficient quality of life in high-density cities it is important to maintain and restore an urban green space system. A densely planted green space is the natural way of reducing erosion. By improving physical fitness and reducing depression the presence of green spaces can enhance the health and wellbeing of people living and working in cities.
A 2010 meta-analysis in BMC Public Health have found that compared to walking or running in synthetic environments doing so in green spaces led to decreased anger fatigue and feelings of depression in addition to increased attention levels. In this sense 1C cooler urban environments prevent the harmful ozone layer that is triggered during intense heat episodes from forming. Promotes a More Active Lifestyle.
The available evidence summarized in this chapter suggests that potential causal pathways leading to public health benefits of urban green spaces include psychological relaxation and stress reduction improved social cohesion and psychological attachment to the home area immune system benefits and enhanced physical activity. In addition to cooling the actual space urban green spaces are also able to influence the surrounding area and this phenomenon is called the urban green space cooling effect. Another benefit of green roofs is that they retain 40 of rainwater.
It is therefore important that urban design and planning decisions are informed by robust evidence. It can encourage exercise provide spaces for socializing decrease noise and air pollution and improve immune function by providing exposure to beneficial microbiota. When erosion occurs in an urban setting it can easily lead to flooding mudslides and dust storms.
Urban green spaces such as domestic gardens parks and woodlands provide a multitude of benefits to human urban populations and a vital habitat for wildlife. Moreover urban green space and a comfortable urban climate also produce social and economic benefits. Urban backyards and green spaces contribute to reducing carbon emission levels in cities which makes air cleaner and healthier for its residents.
An evidence-based approach to urban planning is therefore essential. It plays a vital role in our cities as an urban lung discharging oxygen to reduce the citys heat the wall for harmful air pollution and offer greatest benefits in term. Urban green spaces are considered an appropriate way to reduce urban heat island effects and provide comfort to the nearby occupants.
Urban developments are costly projects. This report summarizes the available evidence of beneficial effects of urban green spaces such as improved mental health reduced cardiovascular morbidity and mortality obesity and risk of type 2 diabetes and improved pregnancy outcomes. However the evidence for physical and non-physical health benefits of urban green space is unclear.
