Branching out Greening the city for resilient healthy

Branching out: Greening the city for resilient, healthy communities • A short synopsis of evidence • • Dr Kate Matysek National Policy Advisor, Heart Foundation © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia

Green Spaces • vegetated land within or adjoining an urban area bushland, amenity parks and grasslands, outdoor sports facilities, school playgrounds, vacant land countryside immediately adjoining an urban area. • from formally designated areas such as parks, to more natural areas (e. g. corridors along river banks). • can also be created through green roofs and tree-lined streets. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 2

Planning implications • 2011: ¾ of Australians in 18 major cities, popn >100, 000 • Major implications for: – Planning for supportive environments for health • Access to green space – Mental health – Physical activity © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 4

Some Basics… • FACT: Physical activity can reduce depression and promote wellbeing. • FACT: In densely populated urban areas, green space within walking distance is likely to promote physical activity outside the home for all age groups. • FACT: Tree-lined routes can offer extra motivation to walk compared to routes without trees. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 5

Physical Activity & Nature • Physical inactivity results in 1. 9 million deaths worldwide annually, roughly one in 25 of all deaths • Natural environments offer low-cost preventative and remedial opportunities for public health (Maller, Townsend et al. 2002). • Children and adults benefit so much from contact with nature that land conservation can now be viewed as a public health strategy (Frumkin and Louv 2007). © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 6

Did you know? • People who live close to a park are more likely to lead active lives and less likely to be overweight. • A recent study commissioned by Natural England found that people living in neighbourhoods more than a mile from a park had a 27 % greater chance of being overweight or obese. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 7

• Both physical activity and exposure to green space are known separately to have positive effects on physical and mental health Source: Pretty, Peacock et al. (2005) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 8

Green exercise is… • any informal physical activity that takes place outdoors e. g. – – – gardening cycling walking in urban green areas kite flying conservation projects in the countryside • living near a park predicts more physical activity • Parks have greater use with greenery, maintenance, facilities like rest rooms Source: Dannenberg, Frumkin et al. (2011) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 9

What does the evidence say? • The first 5 minutes of green exercise have the biggest effect on – – Mood Self esteem Lighter intensity activities produced the greatest effects Individuals experiencing mental ill-health benefit most. Source: Barton (2010) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 10

• Every 10% in green space is associated with a reduction in diseases equivalent to an increase of five years of life expectancy Source: European Environment Agency (2012) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 11

Walking and forests for health • walking in forest environments = beneficial to heart health and blood pressure. • walking activity in an urban environment does not produce the cardiovascular improvements of walking in a forested environment. • these findings have major implications for how we view exercise and its place in the modern urbanised world. Source: Li (2011) European Journal of Applied Physiology 111: 2845 -2853. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 12

It might just lower your blood pressure… • Blood measures: The natural fragrances of trees (phytoncides) are speculated to partially contribute to reduction in blood pressure during walking in a forest park (Dayawansa, 2003; Li, 2011). • Various factors of walking in a forested park contribute to lowering sympathetic nerve activity and increasing parasympathetic nerve activity, therefore positively influencing blood pressure (Li, 2011). • Urban areas didn’t produce the same result. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 13

CO-BENEFITS OF GREEN SPACE PLANNING DESIGN ENVIRONMENT © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia

Green Space and the Quality of the Environment • Reduces flooding – 1. 3 million trees catches 7 billion tons of rainwater /yr • Reduces noise – Belt of trees lowers noise by 6– 8 decibels for every 30 metres width of woodland • Reduces pollution – 1. 3 million trees remove 2535 tonnes of pollutants from the air/ yr • Over one year a mature tree will take up about 22 Kgs of CO 2 from the atmosphere, and in exchange release O 2. • Reduces urban ‘heat islands’ – 10% more green cover in urban areas stabilises temp 1°C above current levels despite global warming. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 15

Urban heat: Fight it with green! • Over next 70 years: – if green cover is by 10 %, urban temperatures could by 8. 2 °C above current levels. • But, the urban green cover by 10% = restrict temp to only 1°C. Source: European Environment Agency (2012) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 16

Co-benefits of greenspace Reduce costs associated with maintaining urban infrastructure by: • lessening flooding • suppressing dust • cooling hot areas • reducing wind-speeds and storm damage • Bringing greenspace back into urban areas also bolsters urban habitats, increasing biodiversity and enhancing ecological connectivity (Byrne and Sipe 2010) © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 17

Active and passive in Greenspace • Active and Passive Open Space • Active recreation - intensive management, maintenance, and high costs; sometimes privatised; equity issues • Passive recreation – emphasis on open space component of park, allows for preservation of natural habitat – Requires little management, low cost • Passive - reduces the burden of managing active recreation facilities & developed infrastructure • How to ensure it gets proper attention in planning schemes? © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 18

Call to Action • Prioritise efforts to improve access to well-designed green places and spaces through intelligent urban design, planning, management and green infrastructure strategies. © 2010 National Heart Foundation of Australia Name of presentation in footer Slide 19