scholarly journals Five years of citizen science and standardized field surveys reveal a threatened urban Eden for wild bees in Brussels, Belgium

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas J. Vereecken ◽  
Timothy Weekers ◽  
Leon Marshall ◽  
Jens D’Haeseleer ◽  
Maarten Cuypers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
List Type ◽  
Wild Bees ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
Capital Region ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
Essential Components

AbstractUrbanisation is often put forward as an important driver of biodiversity loss, including for pollinators such as wild bees. However, recent evidence shows that the mosaics of urban green spaces, and in particular certain categories of informal urban green spaces (IGS), can play an important role to help native wild bees thrive in cities.Here, we describe the results of five years of citizen science and standardised field surveys of wild bees conducted at the Friche Josaphat, a 24-ha urban wasteland in the Brussels-Capital Region (Belgium). These field surveys were initiated following the planned restructuring and partial destruction of this site by the regional authorities.We recorded a total of 2,507 specimens belonging to 127 species of wild bees, i.e. 60.5% of the 210 species recorded regionally, including nine that are threatened with extinction at national or European scales. The Friche Josaphat encompasses a significant share of the functional and phylogenetic diversity of wild bees known from the Brussels-Capital Region and is one of the most species-rich localities known to date for wild bees in Belgium.Collectively, our results highlight the strong complementarity of citizen science and academic approaches in biodiversity surveys, and they reaffirm that wastelands are essential components of urban biodiversity. Our study stresses the need to provide biodiverse IGS with a formal status within the mosaic of urban green spaces, but also to acknowledge and safeguard their natural capital and the multiple ecosystem services they provide.

scholarly journals Domestic gardens as favorable pollinator habitats in impervious landscapes

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marine Levé ◽  
Emmanuelle Baudry ◽  
Carmen Bessa-Gomes
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Urban Expansion ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
List Type ◽  
Impervious Surfaces ◽  
Residential Areas ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
Domestic Gardens

AbstractUrban expansion is correlated to negative biodiversity trends. The amount of impervious surfaces in urban areas is a determinant of pollinator species assemblages. While the increase in urbanization and impervious surfaces negatively impacts pollinators, cities also encompass urban green spaces, which have a significant capacity to support biodiversity. Among them, domestic gardens that represent a non-negligible fraction of green spaces have been shown to benefit pollinators. Domestic gardens may form habitat clusters in residential areas, although their value at a landscape scale is still unknown. Here, we investigate the combined effects of impervious surfaces and domestic garden areas on pollinator richness. Due to the difficulty of accessing privately owned domestic gardens, we chose to use citizen science data from a well-established French citizen science program known as SPIPOLL. Using regression tree analysis on buffers located from 50m to 1000m around the data points, we show the importance of pollinators being in close proximity to domestic gardens as locally favorable habitats that are embedded within a landscape, in which impervious surfaces represent unfavorable areas. We highlight the inter-connection between local and landscape scales, the potential for patches of domestic gardens in residential areas, and the need to consider the potential of gardeners’ coordinated management decisions within a landscape context.HighlightsCitizen science provided access to domestic gardens, understudied urban green spacesImpervious surfaces limit pollinators presence at landscape levelSufficient critical amount of gardens increased pollinator diversity at local scaleCritical amount of gardens’ knowledge may favor coordinated decisions by gardenersPollinators may benefit from patches of domestic gardens in an urban matrix

scholarly journals Reading Urban Green Morphology to Enhance Urban Resilience: A Case Study of Six Southern European Cities

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (16) ◽  
pp. 9163
Author(s):  
Michèle Pezzagno ◽  
Barbara M. Frigione ◽  
Carla S. S. Ferreira
Keyword(s):  
Ecosystem Services ◽  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Natural Capital ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Morphology ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
Urban Resilience ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
European Cities

A loss of natural capital within cities and their surrounding areas has been noticed over the last decades. Increasing development associated with higher sealing rates has caused a general loss of Urban Green Spaces (UGS) within the urban environment, whereas urban sprawl and the improvement of road networks have deeply fragmented the surrounding landscape and jeopardized ecosystems connectivity. UGS are an essential component of the urban system, and their loss has a greater impact on, e.g., ecological and hydrological processes, threatening human well-being. Different types and spatial configurations of UGS may affect their own ability to provide ecosystem services, such as biodiversity support and water regulation. Nevertheless, the study of UGS spatial patterns is a research branch poorly addressed. Moreover, UGS analyses are mainly focused on public and vast green spaces, but seldom on informal, private, and interstitial ones, returning a myopic representation of urban green areas. Therefore, this study investigates the UGS spatial patterns within six Southern European cities, using the urban morphology analysis to assess all urban vegetated lands. Results revealed three main Urban Green Spatial Patterns (UGSPs): Fragmented, Compact, and Linear Distributions. UGSPs taxonomy represents a novelty in the urban morphology field and may have important implications for the ability to provide ecosystem services and, thus, human well-being.

scholarly journals When It Rains, It Pours: Integrating Citizen Science Methods to Understand Resilience of Urban Green Spaces

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bethany Pudifoot ◽  
Macarena L. Cárdenas ◽  
Wouter Buytaert ◽  
Jonathan D. Paul ◽  
Claire L. Narraway ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Citizen Science ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Green Space ◽  
Infiltration Rate ◽  
Soil Characteristics ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
Flow Diagram ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces

Urban green spaces are often promoted as nature-based solutions, thus helping to mitigate the negative effects of climate change. Estimating the potential environmental benefits provided by urban green space is difficult because of inconsistencies in management practices and their heterogeneous nature. Collecting data across such a spectrum of contexts at a large scale is costly and time consuming. In this study, we explore a novel integrated method for citizen scientists to assess the flood mitigation potential of urban green spaces. In three European cities, citizen scientists measured infiltration rate and associated soil characteristics in managed and unmanaged urban green spaces. The results show that simple citizen science-based measurements can indicate the infiltration potential (i.e., high vs. low) of soil at these sites. Infiltration rate was best predicted by measurements of soil compaction, soil color, air temperature, and level of insolation (i.e., high vs. low). These simple, fast methods can be repeated over time and space by citizen scientists to provide robust estimates of soil characteristics and the infiltration potential of soils that exist in similar temperate urban areas. A classification flow diagram was constructed and validated that allows citizen scientists to carry out such tests over a wider geographical region and at a higher frequency than would be available to research scientists alone. Most importantly, it allows citizens to take actions to improve infiltration in their local green space and support local flood resilience.

scholarly journals PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND ENVIRONMENT: THE INFLUENCE OF URBAN GREEN SPACES ON HEALTH

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-309
Author(s):  
Juliana Felipe ◽  
Marcus Vinicius Pimenta Rodrigues ◽  
Aline Duarte Ferreira ◽  
Elivelton Silva Fonseca ◽  
Gabrielle Gomes dos Santos Ribeiro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Multidisciplinary Approach ◽  
Sample Selection ◽  
Physical Activities ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
Level Of Evidence ◽  
Field Surveys ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
Scale Parameters

ABSTRACT Introduction: Urban green spaces can offer opportunities for regular physical activity, providing benefits in the lives of members of the population, such as physical, social and affective health. The aim of this article consists of analyzing the influence of urban green spaces on physical activity, focusing on urban environmental quality and the health of those who engage in physical activities in open areas. The study has a multidisciplinary approach from the perspective of environmental health. Method: The study design was based on qualitative research, using a bibliographic and document search as well as field surveys, whose technique involved direct observation (DO). The sample selection was based on Miot (2011), consisting of a total of 36 individuals aged between 18 and 40 years, who perform physical activities regularly, at least three times a week, for at least 50 minutes. Questionnaires were also applied using the IPAQ (assessment of physical activity) and Borg Scale parameters. Results: The study showed that the research participants became more active, possibly being stimulated and motivated by their surroundings with widespread vegetation cover, the good infrastructure of the venue and the guidance provided during the research. Conclusion: The research project showed that the greater the frequency and intensity of physical activity in open areas, the better the body's physiological adaptability. Level of Evidence II; Prognostic study.

scholarly journals Urban Green Spaces and Housing Prices: An Alternative Perspective

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (13) ◽  
pp. 3707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronika Liebelt ◽  
Stephan Bartke ◽  
Nina Schwarz
Keyword(s):  
Urban Economics ◽  
Housing Prices ◽  
Hedonic Pricing ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
Urban Residents ◽  
Buffer Zones ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
Alternative Perspective ◽  
Essential Components

Urban green spaces (UGS) are essential components of sustainable cities that provide many benefits to urban residents, such as recreation or aesthetics. Urban residents may be willing to pay for some of these ecosystem services. Indeed, studies investigating the formation of housing prices through hedonic pricing analysis have shown that UGS can influence housing prices. Hedonic pricing analysis puts housing units at the center of analysis. In this study, we investigate whether an alternative perspective provides additional insights into the effects of UGS on pricing. The proposed approach puts UGS into the center of analysis by applying an analysis of buffer zones to housing prices, thus, linking approaches from urban economics and landscape ecology. Such an analysis could deepen our understanding of the effects of UGS on housing prices by analyzing price–distance slopes around UGS-thus supporting more informed decisions on efficient UGS management and urban planning. Our results using a case study on Leipzig, Germany, demonstrate that the size of UGS affects price–distance slopes around them. We conclude that further investigations should be fathomed to unleash the potential of applying the analysis of buffer zones around UGS as a method to inform sustainable UGS design in cities.

scholarly journals The Socioeconomic Welfare of Urban Green Areas and Parks; A Literature Review of Available Evidence

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7863
Author(s):  
Antonios Kolimenakis ◽  
Alexandra D. Solomou ◽  
Nikolaos Proutsos ◽  
Evangelia V. Avramidou ◽  
Evangelia Korakaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Urban Policy ◽  
Green Spaces ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Natural Environments ◽  
Exclusion Criteria ◽  
Urban Green ◽  
Urban Green Spaces ◽  
Urban Green Areas ◽  
Green Areas

Urban green areas present a lucid example for the harmonious co-existence of the artificial and natural environments best illustrated by their interdependence and interconnection in urban spaces. Urban green areas are essential for the health and wellbeing of citizens. The present study aimed to investigate those multiple benefits for citizens that arise through the existence of urban green areas, as well as important policy dimensions that should be considered when designing the expansion of urban green spaces in urban development. The study was based on a literature review to examine for available evidence on the benefit levels derived by the existence of urban green areas. An extended literature review was followed by a structured review, based on specific inclusion and exclusion criteria, which partly followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. The search was conducted in two databases, and a total of 1674 articles and abstracts were identified through the database searches. After removing 114 duplicates, 1560 records were initially screened based on title and abstract. Following inclusion and exclusion criteria, 14 articles were incorporated in the structured review and a total of 47 in the extended review. The extended literature review identified 33 additional articles examining aspects of benefits that did not fall under the pre-established inclusion and exclusion criteria used in the structured review, such as health benefits and other social parameters associated with urban green spaces. The selected studies were allocated in five principal groups according to study types: three of the them consisted of studies employing “willingness to pay” (WTP) methods, five were based on property values, two studies assigned monetary values, while another two assigned CO2 values, and, finally, two studies were based on qualitative criteria. The results indicated benefits to citizens and increased welfare levels gained by the existence of urban green areas. The conducted review revealed a number of findings and recommendations that could direct future research and urban policy. Those hints could assist local authorities as well as stakeholders in order to measure and assess the benefits of green spaces and urban parks and promote measures and programs to assist their further deployment.

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