Friend or Foe? An Overview of the Services and Disservices from Urban Green Spaces

Abstract

Many topics in urban planning have their share of pros and cons. The balance of two sides of a scale can be illustrated with an item such as a seesaw: there are times when the weight on one side outweighs the weight on the other. Depending on the scale and the objects involved, there are instances where the balance can shift from one side to the other over time. Thus, the pressures on the seesaw are not necessarily static but often dynamic. Similarly, some scholars and planners wonder when the benefits of urban green spaces outweigh the potential disservices. There has been more research on the ecosystem services and related benefits of green spaces than the risks. Dozens of studies have linked urban green spaces to mitigating the urban heat island effect, building community resilience, and buffering against storm events (Chawla et al. in Health Place 28:1–13, 2014; Jesdale et al. in Environ Health Perspect 121(7):811, 2013). And numerous reviews have identified significant pathways between exposure to natural environments and improved human health, such as increased physical activity, social contacts, and lower levels of stress (Fong et al. in Current Environ Health Rep 5(1):77–87, 2018; Markevych et al. in Environ Res 158:301–317, 2017; James et al. in Current Epidemiol Rep 2(2):131–142, 2015). Yet potential adverse effects of green spaces are either not mentioned or deemphasized in most studies and literature reviews of green spaces. A small body of work has found that some green space management development strategies can lead to undesirable health outcomes (i.e., seasonal allergies, infectious diseases, and injuries during outdoor recreation) as well as unwanted social outcomes (i.e., gentrification) (Nilsson et al. in Forests, trees and human health. Springer, pp 1–19, 2011). Green spaces can thus provide both services and disservices depending on the urban context and their design and maintenance, so these factors are essential aspects in socio-ecological frameworks of public health. In this chapter, we discuss the possible services and disservices derived from urban green spaces and how planners can balance the seesaw and emphasize the former over the latter.