Green Infrastructure A solution...

Mike GraceHead of Profession for Sustainable Land Use

A solution to.......What’s the problem?

Multiple issues for our places and our people

• Air pollution reduces average UK life expectancy by 7-8 months• Urban flooding costs £270 million a year in England and Wales.• The cost of environmental damage from polluted urban wash-off

has been estimated at £150 - £250 million.• Resources - South-East England has less water per head than

Morocco or Egypt. • Mental illness was estimated as a £77.4 billion welfare loss to the

UK.• Insufficient physical activity costs the UK £8.2 billion annually• Biodiversity – specialist species being squeezed, loss of diversity

Green Infrastructure – a solution

Can GI deliver solutions and benefits? • Recognised in Foresight Report,

NEWP and NPPF• Multifunctional, integrated use of

land

Air-quality

Air pollution reduces average UK life expectancy by 7-8 months (1)

• Research in Torbay showed that Torbay’s trees removed 22.88 tonnes of O₃, 17.97 tonnes of PM₁₀, 7.91 tonnes of NO₂, and 1.3 tonnes of SO₂ annually (2)

• This leads to an annual health benefit of £1.33 million (central estimate), without including the SO2

(3).• But need to pick the right trees

1) DEFRA 2007a. The air quality strategy for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. DEFRA. London.2) ROGERS, K, HANSFORD, D, SUNDERLAND, T & COISH, N 2011. Measuring the ecosystem services of Torbayʼs trees3) SUNDERLAND, T., ROGERS, K., COISH, N. (2011). ‘What proportion of the costs of urban trees can be justified by the carbon sequestration and airquality benefits they provide?’ Proceedings of the Arboricultural Association 2011 Conference. Warwick, September 19–20, article in press.

Urban flooding costs £270 million a year in England and Wales(1).

• It is been predicted that this will increase to between £1 and £10 billion a year by 2080 unless preventative action is taken(1).

• Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS) are cost-effective ways to reduce flood risk(2).

• Green roofs(3) and urban trees(4)

retain rainwater reducing flood risk. 1) PARLIAMENTARY OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 2007. Urban flooding2) DUFFY, A, JEFFERIES, C, WADDELL, G, SHANKS, G, BLACKWOOD, D & WATKINS, A 2008. A cost comparison of traditional drainage and SUDS in

Scotland. Water Science & Technology, 57, 1451-1459. SUDS involve retaining water above ground near to where it falls. Duffy found the capital costs of SUDS to be less than half that of traditional drainage and maintenance costs to also be lower.

3) MENTENS, J, RAES, D & HERMY, M 2006. Green roofs as a tool for solving the rainwater runoff problem in the urbanized 21st century? Landscape and Urban Planning, 77, 217-226.

4) XIAO, Q, MCPHERSON, EG, SIMPSON, JR & USTIN, SL 1998. Rainfall interception by Sacramento's urban forest. Journal of Arboriculture, 24, 235-244.

Flood control

Urban run-off pollution

The cost of environmental damage from polluted urban wash-off has been estimated at £150 - £250 million(1).• SUDS systems, such as sand and soil

based filters(2) and detention pools(3,4)

filter water effectively.• Green roofs(5) and urban trees(6) retain

rainwater reducing peak run off.• Increasing groundwater infiltration

reduces the number combined sewer overflow(1)

.

1) ENVIRONMENT AGENCY 2007. Response to Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution consultation ‘Urban Environment’. http://www.rcep.org.uk/reports/26-urban/documents/urb-env-summary.pdf

2) HATT, BE, FLETCHER, TD & DELETIC, A 2008. Hydraulic and Pollutant Removal Performance of Fine Media Stormwater Filtration Systems. Environ. Sci. Technol, 42, 2535-2541.

3) HEAL, KV, HEPBURN, DA, LUNN, RJ & TYSON, J 2006. Sediment management in sustainable urban drainage system ponds. Water Science and Technology, 53, 219-228.

4) NAPIER, F, JEFFERIES, C, HEAL, KV, FOGG, P, ARCY, BJ & CLARKE, R 2009. Evidence of traffic-related pollutant control in soil-based Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (SUDS). Water science and technology: a journal of the International Association on Water Pollution Research, 60, 221.

5) MENTENS, J, RAES, D & HERMY, M 2006. Green roofs as a tool for solving the rainwater runoff problem in the urbanized 21st century? Landscape and Urban Planning, 77, 217-226.

6) XIAO, Q, MCPHERSON, EG, SIMPSON, JR & USTIN, SL 1998. Rainfall interception by Sacramento's urban forest. Journal of Arboriculture, 24, 235-244.

Future proof?

South-East England has less water per head than Morocco or Egypt(1). • SUDS can recharge aquifers through

supporting infiltration and hold water for non-drinking water uses(3).

• Trees(4), parks(5), green roofs(6), and ponds/lakes(4) can all help to reduce heat retention.

• Parts of the food system are vulnerable to higher energy costs(7). Green Infrastructure can allow food to be grown near home.

1) ENVIRONMENT AGENCY 2008a. Water resources in England and Wales - current state and future pressures. 2) DEFRA 2009. Adapting to Climate Change: UK Climate Projections. DEFRA. London.3) CARTER, T & BUTLER, C 2008. Ecological impacts of replacing traditional roofs with green roofs in two urban areas. Cities and the Environment, 1, 9-17. 4) BOLUND, P & HUNHAMMAR, S 1999. Ecosystem services in urban areas. Ecological Economics, 29, 293-301 5) BOWLER, D., BUYUNG-ALI, L., KNIGHT, T. & PULLIN, A.S. 2010b. The importance of nature for health: is there a specific benefit of contact with green space?

Collaboration for Environmental Evidence Bangor Bangor University 6) KUMAR, R & KAUSHIK, SC 2005. Performance evaluation of green roof and shading for thermal protection of buildings. Building and Environment, 40, 1505-1511.7) FORESIGHT 2011. The Future of Food and Farming: Challenges and choices for global sustainability GOVERNMENT OFFICE FOR SCIENCE. London

Mental Health

Mental illness estimated as a £77.4 billion welfare loss to the UK(1).

• Time ‘in nature’ promotes recovery from stress and attention fatigue, and has positive effects on mood, concentration and self-discipline(2).

• There is evidence which strongly suggests a long-term relationship between chronic stress and access to green space(3,4).

1) THE SAINSBURY CENTRE FOR MENTAL HEALTH 2003. The economic and social costs of mental illness. 2) HEALTH COUNCIL OF THE NETHERLANDS 2004. Nature and Health. NATURE AND FOOD QUALITY AGRICULTURE. The Hague3) GRAHN, P & STIGSDOTTER, UA 2003. Landscape planning and stress. Urban forestry & urban greening, 2, 1-18. 4) NIELSEN, TS & HANSEN, KB 2007. Do green areas affect health? Results from a Danish survey on the use of green areas and

health indicators. Health & Place, 13, 839-850.

Health & Physical activity

Insufficient physical activity costs the UK £8.2 billion annually• These is a relationship between quantity

of accessible green space and population health – even when you control for wealth and other factors(1,2,3,4)

• People use green space much more when its in short walking distance(5,6).

• Local context is crucial, poor-quality green space where there are concerns for personal safety will be used less(7)

.

1) DE VRIES, S, AVERHEIJ, R, PGROENEWEGEN, P & SPREEUWENBERG, P 2003. Natural environments-healthy environments? An exploratory analysis of the relationship between greenspace and health. Environment and Planning A, 35, 1717-1731

2) MAAS, J, VERHEIJ, RA, GROENEWEGEN, PP, DE VRIES, S & SPREEUWENBERG, P 2006. Green space, urbanity, and health: how strong is the relation? Journal of epidemiology and community health, 60, 587.

3) TAKANO, T, NAKAMURA, K & WATANABE, M 2002. Urban residential environments and senior citizens’ longevity in megacity areas: the importance of walkable green spaces. Journal of epidemiology and community health, 56, 913.

4) MITCHELL, R & POPHAM, F 2008. Effect of exposure to natural environment on health inequalities: an observational population study. The Lancet, 372, 1655-1660 5) GILES-CORTI, B, BROOMHALL, MH, KNUIMAN, M, COLLINS, C, DOUGLAS, K, NG, K, LANGE, A & DONOVAN, RJ 2005. Increasing walking:: How important is distance to,

attractiveness, and size of public open space? American journal of preventive medicine, 28, 169-176. 6) NEUVONEN, M, SIEVÄNEN, T, TÖNNES, S & KOSKELA, T 2007. Access to green areas and the frequency of visits-A case study in Helsinki. Urban forestry & urban

greening, 6, 235-247. 7) URBAN GREEN SPACES TASK FORCE 2002. Green Spaces. Better Places. LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND THE REGIONS/ DEPARTMENT FOR TRANSPORT. London.

Tourism and biodiversity

• Visits by UK residents to the countryside and/or villages contribute £5.5 billion annually for the economy in England and that visits by UK residents contribute £7.4 billion annually (1)

• Recreational visits to Forestry Commission estates have an economic value of £3.354 million per annum32 (2)

• It is estimated that people visiting Osprey watching sites in the UK bring total additional to the seaside expenditure of £3.5 million per year to the areas around the sites (3)

1) Deloitte and Oxford Economics, 2010.2) Willis and Garrod, 1991. 3) Dickie et al., 2006.

Putting it together Multi-functional use of land

GI – part of the solution

The Green Infrastructure Partnership

• Green Infrastructure is a language for communicating the value of the living network of green spaces, water and other environmental features in both urban and rural areas

• GI is a concept bringing together developers, planners, landscape architects, ecologists, land managers, farmers, park attendants, doctors, water authorities, highway authorities and more

• But we only see the benefits if it is truly multi-functional

• Which means working together in partnership

GI – part of the solution to the growth agenda

Not yet a silver bullet - areas for exploration • Do not know what proportion of the GI area secured through s106

means is actually delivered and to what standard• Gaps in research and evidence relating to green infrastructure and

its contribution to climate change adaptation and mitigation • How to ‘retrofit’ urban areas with GI; need longitudunal studies to

demonstrate whether the (positive) cumulative impact of the GI that is achieved can help establish functioning ecosystem services within existing urban areas

• How do we design a GI network that is more than the sum of its parts? How can we assess the provision of ecosystem services for one development as part of a wider network?

• What does a coherent, resilient ecological network look like?

Quality Assurance of GI – can we develop standards?

GI’s biodiversity value requires more evidence; • A net loss on species richness and diversity when substituting rural

habitats for suburban habitats, particularly in the south and east of England.

• Analysis suggests that species (such as Turtle Dove, Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, Lesser Whitethroat, Nightingale & Yellow Wagtail) likely to be at risk from urban expansion

• Possible mitigation? May be that ‘mature’ green space is a critical factor that can increase the value of urban developments

• Study could provide no assessment of the average ‘quality’ of suburban land cover and whether this average could be improved upon on a large scale, in order to reduce the impact of urban expansion into rural

Changes in breeding bird populations due to housing development (BTO Research Report No. 464, May 2007);

Natural England’s RoleEvidence, advice, expertise, support

• Microeconomic Evidence for the Benefits of Investment in the Environment (MEBIE) http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/32031?category=7005

• Monitor of Engagement with the Natural Environment (MENE) http://publications.naturalengland.org.uk/publication/1712385?category=47018

• Natural England’s Health and the Natural Environment web page info pack contains a wealth of research references.

• Financial support for GI delivery and strategy development• Olympic Green Infrastructure Case studies – Weymouth, Portland and

Hadleigh.

Coming soon....• An assessment GI valuation tools• GI as a catalyst for economic growth (with Defra)• Mapping and monitoring GI

The healing gift of space

“We all need space; unless we have it, we cannot reach that sense of quietin which whispers of better things come to us gently”

Octavia Hill 1888

A lawn is nature under totalitarian rule. ~Michael Pollan, Second Nature, 1991

Sociability

• People are more social in green, treed, environments(1,2,3).

• Greenspaces can help people’s attachment to their area(4).• Greenspaces can help the inclusion of older people(5) and encourage

mixing between different ethnic and social groups(6,7,8).

• Community cohesion is essential to economic success, particularly with regard to limiting crime(8).

1) SULLIVAN, W., KUO, F. & DEPOOTER, S. 2004. The fruit of urban nature: vital neighborhood spaces. Environment and Behavior, 36, 678.2) COLEY, R., KUO, F. & SULLIVAN, W. 1997. Where Does Community Grow? Environment and Behavior, 29, 468–494.3) COHEN, D., INAGAMI, S. & FINCH, B. 2008. The built environment and collective efficacy. Health & Place, 14, 198-208.4) KIM, J. & KAPLAN, R. 2004. Physical and psychological factors in sense of community: new urbanist Kentlands and nearby Orchard Village. Environment and

Behavior, 36, 313.5) KWEONEARNEDHERPKD, B. 1998. Green common spaces and the social integration of inner-city older adults. Environment and Behavior.6) SEELAND, K., DÜBENDORFER, S. & HANSMANN, R. 2009. Making friends in Zurich's urban forests and parks: The role of public green space for social inclusion

of youths from different cultures. Forest Policy and Economics, 11, 10-17.7) GOBSTER, P. 1998. Urban parks as green walls or green magnets? Interracial relations in neighborhood boundary parks. Landscape and Urban Planning, 41,

43-55.8) CLG 2009, The Economic case for Cohesion

Less noise, more birdsong

• Vegetation provides soft complex surfaces, which reduce the amount that sound travels around a built up area(1)

• Trees or hedges can act as effective ‘noise screens’(2).• People dislike noise, but value natural sounds. A shrub

layer provides habitat and encourages the production of birdsong(3).

1) BOLUND, P & HUNHAMMAR, S 1999. Ecosystem services in urban areas. Ecological Economics, 29, 293-301 2) BARTH, F.G. & SCHMID, A. 2001. Ecology of sensing, Springer Verlag. 3) IRVINE, KATHERINE N., DEVINE-WRIGHT, PATRICK, PAYNE, SARAH R., FULLER, RICHARD A., PAINTER, BIRGIT & GASTON, KEVIN J. 2009. Green space, soundscape

and urban sustainability: an interdisciplinary, empirical study. Local Environment: The International Journal of Justice and Sustainability, 14, 155 - 172.

Wealthier areas have better greenspace

• People value access to high-quality greenspace• People use their power in the property market to secure properties

in greener areasa, with better viewsb, and in greater proximity to high-quality parks c,d

a) GLA ECONOMICS 2003. Valuing greeness: Green spaces, house prices, and Londoners prioritiesb) LUTTIK, J. 2000. The value of trees, water and open space as reflected by house prices in the Netherlands. Landscape and Urban Planning, 48, 161-167.c) DUNSE, N., DEHRING, C. & WHITE, M. 2007. Urban parks, open space and residential property values.d) CROMPTON, J. 2005. The impact of parks on property values: empirical evidence from the past two decades in the United States. Managing Leisure, 10,

203-218.

1) Parkinson, M., M. Hutchins, et al. (2004). "Competitive European Cities: Where do the core cities stand." Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, London.

2) CSI (2008). Creating a Setting for Investment: Project Report.3) PRUPIM Developments. "Green Park Reading ". Retrieved 29th September from

www.prupim.com/site/.../2775_GreenPark_case_study_24_sept.pdf

Successful businesses

• Inward investment is driven by workforce skills, innovation, and connectivity. Quality of life factors, of which environmental quality is part, play a role in attracting highly skilled employees to the area(1).

• The quality of the immediate office environment is of most interest to high-value added, knowledge intensive industry(2).

• Green Business Park near Reading is an example which mixes environmental and economic success(3).

Physical activity

Insufficient physical activity costs the UK £8.2 billion annually(1).• The number of people reaching

recommended activity levels is still declining(2).

• Walking and cycling from home are the forms of activity which are most likely to become long-term habits(3).

• Greenspace and green streets are important to making an area walking and cycling friendly – along with traffic volumes, safety and accessibility of services(4)

1) CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER 2004. At least five a week: Evidence on the impact of physical activity and its relationship to health.DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH.

2) FORESIGHT 2007. Tackling Obesities: Future Choices DIUS. London. 3) HILLSDON, M & THOROGOOD, M 1996. A systematic review of physical activity promotion strategies. British Medical Journal, 30,

84. 4) PIKORA, T, GILES-CORTI, B, BULL, F, JAMROZIK, K & DONOVAN, R 2003. Developing a framework for assessment of the

environmental determinants of walking and cycling. Social Science & Medicine, 56, 1693-1703.