Let's make cities cleaner, cooler, more beautiful. With trees and woodlands

Environment · Rudi Bressa · 2016-10-24

They reduce average temperatures, protect against storms, and clean the air. Trees, woodlands and forests are our allies in cities too.

Alongside sustainable mobility plans that include more hybrid cars, public transport and bicycles, urban forests are capable of making cities safer, helping to mitigate climate change and improving the health of citizens. Now confirmation comes from a FAO report as well.

alberi in città — Planting trees and urban forests makes cities happier and healthier places © Aleksejs Bergmanis/Pexels

The document, entitled "Guidelines on Urban and Peri-urban Forestry", was presented on 16 October 2016 in Quito, Ecuador, on the occasion of the Habitat III conference: the world summit held every twenty years to take stock of progress on sustainable urban development. "Urban planners and other decision-makers are often unaware of the crucial economic, social and environmental benefits that urban forests are able to provide, which means they are spending their funds elsewhere," said Simone Borelli, one of the report's authors. "In this publication we demonstrate that bringing about a 'grey to green' shift is a wise investment capable of improving many aspects of citizens' lives."

More trees and woodlands means more wellbeing

It may seem obvious, yet the management of public green spaces is often not among the priorities of public administrations. Nevertheless, the FAO guidelines confirm that in the context of growing urbanisation — which will see 70 per cent of the population living in urban centres by 2050 — urban forests prove to be fundamental allies in tackling the challenges linked to sustainable development.

alberi e boschi — A flower bed grown around a tree, photographed in Paris © Bsip/Ig/Getty Images

They can not only limit the impacts of extreme weather events, but also improve air and water quality, reduce energy consumption and lower temperatures. The FAO report confirms in this regard that forests are capable of improving wellbeing: green spaces in cities help encourage healthier, more active lifestyles and reduce air and noise pollution. "A 10 per cent increase in green spaces can delay the onset of health problems by up to 5 years," the FAO explains.

Biodiversity improves too

But urban forests also have the capacity to become true treasure troves of biodiversity. It is estimated that 20 per cent of all bird species and 5 per cent of vascular plants live in cities. In Amsterdam alone there are estimated to be 200,000 trees, which provide shelter for 140 different species of birds, 34 mammals, 60 species of fish and 6 species of frogs and salamanders (according to 2008 data from Unep and Iclei).

Foreste urbane — The English city of Bath surrounded by trees. Urban forests are useful not only for the local environment, but also for mitigating climate change and ensuring health, wellbeing and territorial development © Matt Cardy/Getty Images

"These guidelines," Borelli concludes, "can help raise communities' awareness of the contribution that trees and woodlands can make to improving quality of life. As well as their fundamental role in global sustainability."