- Green spaces for capital City Kingstown, St Vincent
- By 2050, 68% of the global population will live in cities
Open space development and green area renovation in the capital, Kingstown, are planned to commence this year (2024).
Benarva Browne, Minister of Urban Development, stated that one of the most effective ways to combat the island’s heat is to create green spaces and grow trees.
“There are several green spaces in Kingstown or areas that have trees; however, because of factors including the use of automobiles and maybe human interventions, they have been degraded. So we’re going to look at reestablishing these and adding some green to certain areas.”
Browne stated that the development of the green spaces will be carried out in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry department.
“They will guide us in terms of the selection of plants and trees to use within the urban areas because these trees would also have to stand up to the heat. My issue with planting trees on sidewalks is that the root structures have to hold. We don’t want to plant trees, and then the trees create uneven sidewalks. So we need to make sure that we hit the perfect blend.”
Browne stated that the overarching purpose is to provide a space for shared leisure while also instilling some national pride and cultural awareness.
The Minister also mentioned that part of this project includes the creation of signs around St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Why are green spaces important?
As our cities grow and more people move into already crowded spaces, what do we need to do to transform our urban areas into healthy places to live? An increasing body of research tells us that we should be letting nature back in.
Dr Cecil Konijnendijk is a Professor of Urban Forestry at the University of British Colombia (UBC). He studies the role of nature and green spaces in cities and towns, and how we can use the natural world to make urban environments healthier and more liveable.
‘Research shows really clearly that we need nature in our surroundings. We need trees in our streets, plants in our gardens and flowers on our balcony. We need nature as our neighbour all the time.’
‘We have a responsibility as human beings to take care of nature in our cities. In return, the benefits to our health would be huge.’
Planning cities to include green spaces wherever possible is the first step in making our urban areas healthier. For example, adding a layer of vegetation to rooftops and creating green roofs has proven to reduce the urban heat island effect.
Having soil, plants and greenery on our roofs would both reduce surface temperature and serve as insulation for the structures below, reducing the energy needed to heat and cool the buildings. Green roofs can also help regulate rainwater, trapping it as it falls and filtering out pollutants.
