Inner-city vegetation 'significantly improves' air quality

Inner-city vegetation, such as plants and trees, significantly improves air quality, according to a new report from the Woodland Trust.

In a report entitled 'Urban air quality', researchers from the Woodland Trust in collaboration with Lancaster and Birmingham Universities found that the overall benefits of trees to air quality and respiratory health are 'overwhelmingly positive'. Additionally, they found that air pollution can be cut substantially with just one tree, which means that cities don’t necessarily have to create their own versions of New York's Central Park to become healthier.

The report outlines how cities can achieve air quality goals while creating health and social benefits. It claims that some pollution concentrations, such as oxides of nitrogen, can be cut by 15 to 20 per cent at ground level by a single tree.

Mike Townsend, Woodland Trust conservation advisor and report author, said: “Although air quality in the UK has improved in recent decades, there remain serious health issues relating to air pollution, particularly in towns and cities. For example, the UK has one of the world’s highest rates of childhood asthma, with about 15 per cent of children affected. But, as this new report shows, Columbia University researchers found asthma rates among children were significantly lower in areas with more street trees.”

Public spending declines in the maintenance and planting of trees has declined of late, which is why the trust decided to commission the study. Mr Townsend told AirQualityNews that they are working to persuade government bodies to increase the funding based on the substantially positive results that are coming back from these studies.

He added: “The other message is to build green space into the fabric of cities so people don’t have to walk along arterial roads. So it’s about benefits now and also planning for the future.”

Posted by Lauren Steadman