URBAN FORESTRY

WHAT IS URBAN FORESTRY?

Urban Forestry is the active recognition that individuals and communities living in urban landscapes benefit from the availability of vegetation in their neighborhood

Why Bother? Views of green space can have dramatic impacts on

people improved worker productivity (Kaplan 1993b), reduced domestic violence (Kuo and Sullivan 1996), shorter healing times (Ulnch 1984)” (Westphal).

1.2 Million tons of Carbon Dioxide stored as a result of New York City’s Urban Forest

REAL HAZARDS THAT REQUIRE MITIGATION According to Plan NYC, “Today, the city’s obesity

rate among children is 24%, almost 10% above the national average. In 2000, children in New York City were almost twice as likely to be hospitalized for asthma as children in the U.S. as a whole” (3)

Solution: “creation of or enhanced access to places for physical activity combined with informational outreach activities is effective in increasing levels of physical activity, as measured by an increase in the percentage of people engaging in physical activity or other measures of physical activity” (Kahn et al. 17).

FINDING THE SPACE:THE EAST RIVER WATER FRONT AND OTHER PLAN NYC INITIATIVES

The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation provided 150 Million dollars In May of 2005 for Water Front Revitalization”

The New York City Department of Parks and Recreations plans to plant 23,000 parks annually, as part of their ultimate goal to plant 1,000,000 trees by 2030

Additionally, They plan to develop 3,000 Green traffic islands by 2017.

THE RESULTING JOBS AND IMPROVEMENT

The MillionTreesNYC initiative: Spans over 10 years, creating 3,000

new jobs. The initiative will increase the scope of

New York City’s Urban Forest by 20% The Total Increase of trees from 1996 to

2006: 19%

THE MOST COMMON TREE PLANTED IN NEW YORK:Platanus x acerifolia:

The London Plane Tree

Central Park

THE EAST RIVER WATERFRONT REVITALIZATION

148 million dollars allocated on August 18th, 2009 to the project for the development of the Esplanade.

Projections for completion 2011 400 new construction jobs Opening of corridors to the public: Includes development of Pavilions,

Large Planters and recreational development of the Promenade

1) Stephenson et al.

WHICH GROUPS ARE CONSIDERED?ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

“Incorporates ‘environmental racism’ and ‘environmental classism’:

“Captures the idea that citizens of difference races and classes experience disparate environment quality”1

Has led environmental analysts to calculate the mental and physical health of urban communities when conducting research studies

HAZARDOUS EFFECTS OF CONCENTRATED FUEL EMISSIONS

“The neighborhoods identified within the most likely cluster of [Learning Disability] LD  prevalence were strongly associated with historically significant sources of lead toxicity such as automobile-related facilities, as well as industries that dealt with lead and other byproducts” (Margal et. al 1084)

“there are substantial residential communities south of the Bruckner Expressway in the Hunts Point and Soundview neighborhoods. North of the Bruckner Expressway, the neighborhoods of Mott Haven, Longwood, Crotona Park East, Bronx Park South/West Farms and Bronx River are predominantly residential,” (New York State Department of Transportation)

CASE STUDY: SOUTH BRONX

Bronx Environmental Stewardship Training program: Unemployed and formerly incarcerated workers are given the opportunity to became certified workers in green-roof installation, urban forestry, hazardous and waste clean up

Job Potential: 175 graduates, since February 2009,

97% employed or enrolled in university

SOUTH BRONX GREEN WAY

1.5 million dollars allocated by the mayor and through New York City Department of Parks & Recreation to rehabilitate

A subset of the larger redevelopment of New York City park Space to include 2.5 acres of open space per 1,000 residents, distributed such that all New Yorkers live within a walking distance of Urban Forestation.

GLOBAL URBAN FORESTRY: HANGZHOU'S URBAN FORESTS

As part of the universal efforts to combat the negative effects of climate change, a multitude of cities are developing their Urban Forests

Hangzhou’s Urban Forest offsets 18.57% of their annual industrial carbon emissions by absorbing 11.74 Tg C (1 Tg = 1012 g)

Urban Forests can play a vital role in reducing Climate change

West Lake in Hangzhou

THE EVIDENCE: Bradley, Gordon A. Urban Forest Landscapes: Integrating Multidisciplinary Perspectives. Seattle: University of Washington, 1995. Print. “Bronx Environmental Stewardship Training Academy.” SSBX: Environmental Justice Solutions. Sustainable South Bronx, 2009. Web. 05 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.ssbx.org/index.php?link=33#best>. Carter, Majora. “Green Jobs, Not Jails.” Scientific American Earth 3.0 18.4 (2008): 1-2. Academic Search Complete. Web. 5 Apr. 2010. Cha, J.Mijin, and Jack Dafoe. New York City Green Collar Jobs Road Map. Urban Agenda. Center for American Progress, Oct. 2009. Web. 3 Apr. 2010. “East River Waterfront Study.” East River Water Front Study- Department of City Planning. Department of City Planning, 2010. Web. 06 Apr. 2010.

<http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/erw/erw.shtml>. Kahn, Emily B., Leigh. T. Ramsey, Ross C. Brownson, Gregory. W. Heath, Elizabeth. H. Howze, Kenneth. E. Powell, Elaine. J. Stone, Mummy. W. Rajab,

and Phaedra Corso. “The Effectiveness of Interventions to Increase Physical Activity A Systematic Review.” American Journal of Preventative Medicine 22.4 (2002): 73-107. Web.

Margal, Florence, and Norah Henry. “A Community-based Assessment of Learning Disabilities Using Environmental and Contextual Risk Factors.” Social Sciences & Medicine 56.5 (2003): 1073-085. Science Direct. Web. 5 Apr. 2010.

NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. Open Space: Ensure That All New Yorkers Live in a 10 Minute Walk of a Park. Greener Greater New York. PLAN NYC, 2009. Web.

Westphal, Lynne M. “URBAN GREENING AND SOCIAL BENEFITS: A STUDY OF EMPOWERMENT OUTCOMES.” Arboriculture 29.3 (2003): 137-46. Web. Zhao, Min, Zheng-hong Kong, Francisco . J. Escobedo, and Jun Gao. “Impacts of Urban Forests on Offsetting Carbon Emissions from Industrial Energy

Use in Hangzhou, China.” Journal of Environmental Management 19.4 (2010): 807-13. EBSCOhost. Web. 10 May 2010. Stephenson, Max, and Lisa Schweitzer. “Right Answers, Wrong Questions: Environmental Justice as Urban Research.” Urban Studies 44.2 (2007):

319-37. EBSCOhost. Web. 10 May 2010. NYSDOT – Bronx – Bruckner Expressway – I278 – Sheridan Expressway – I895 – Bruckner Sheridan EIS.” Bruckner Sheridan Interchange and

Commercial Access to Hunts Point Peninsula. New York State Department of Transportation, 4 Sept. 2003. Web. 10 May 2010. <https://www.nysdot.gov/portal/page/portal/regional-offices/region11/projects/project-repository/bese/scoping/scopingdocument.html>.

Works CitedBurden, Amanda. TRANSFORMING THE EAST RIVER WATERFRONT. Http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/erw/east_river_waterfront_book.pdf. The Department of City Planning, 2010. Web. 16 May 2010. <http://www.nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/erw/east_river_waterfront_book.pdf>.Citywide Census Results. Trees Count. City of New York Department of Parks and Recreation, 2006. Web. 16 May 2010. <http://www.milliontreesnyc.org/downloads/pdf/trees_count_citywide_census_results.pdf>."London Plane Tree In Central Park." Central Park Touring And Sightseeing. 2007. Web. 16 May 2010. <http://www.centralpark2000.com/database_trees/london_plane.htm>."MillionTrees Training Program." MillionTrees Training Program - Center for Economic Opportunity. Center for Economic Opportunity, 2010. Web. 16 May 2010. <http://www.nyc.gov/html/ceo/html/programs/milliontrees.shtml>.Nowak, David, and Daniel Crane. "Carbon Storage and Sequestration by Urban Trees in the USA." Environmental Pollution 116 (2002): 381-89. Science Direct. Web. 16 May 2010.Office of the Mayor. MAYOR BLOOMBERG, GOVERNOR PATERSON, ASSEMBLY SPEAKER SILVER AND OTHER OFFICIALS BREAK GROUND ON EAST RIVER WATERFRONT ESPLANADE IN LOWER MANHATTAN. NYC.gov. Office of the Mayor, 18 Aug. 2009. Web. 16 May 2010. <http://www.nyc.gov:80/portal/site/nycgov/menuitem.c0935b9a57bb4ef3daf2f1c701c789a0/index.jsp?pageID=mayor_press_release&catID=1194&doc_name=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nyc.gov%2Fhtml%2Fom%2Fhtml%2F2009b%2Fpr381-09.html&cc=unused1978&rc=1194&ndi=1>.

METHODOLOGY

Plan NYC provided the general context to inform the political activities that surround the Green Collar industry, however the Center for American Progress provided an in-depth analysis of the Green collar industry that served as the catalyst for all our further research.

Although there was rich information about the kinds of jobs and who would provide them in the afore mentioned case study, I thought it was necessary to cross reference their information with sociological studies that affirmed the environmental and health benefits of these new industrial sectors.

Additionally, I wanted to more closely examine some specific activities of the Plan NYC initiative, and those working in conjunction with the municipal government to ensure environmental justice.