Abstract
Increases in particulate matter in cities threaten both public health and ecosystems. Street trees, which are a corridor-type green infrastructure capable of absorbing particulate matter, have been promoted as one possible solution to this problem. However, planting selected trees solely with the goal of reducing particulate matter may adversely affect street tree ecosystem resilience by inhibiting species diversity. This study aims to investigate urban street tree planting strategies that reduce particulate matter while maintaining ecosystem resilience. To this end, a study site in Suwon, South Korea was selected, and street tree planting scenarios were developed based on the selected site information. A scenario analysis was conducted using a system dynamics model. The model simulated the long-term trends under each scenario regarding the amount of particulate matter absorbed by the trees and the changes in species diversity. The analysis results clearly show that strategic planting of street trees while focusing on only a specific purpose—reducing particulate matter—can adversely affect ecosystem resilience. The scenario analysis also revealed that increasing the number of street trees while maintaining a balance among various species is the best option for reducing particulate matter without degrading species diversity. Additionally, the results support the need to plant evergreen species to consider the winter season.
Highlights
The World Health Organization (WHO) designated particulate matter (PM) as a first-class carcinogen in 2013
We present street tree planting scenarios within the defined specific site in Suwon and evaluate the scenarios through system dynamics model (SD model) simulations developed for this study
PM absorption and species diversity in the Replace-only scenarios. These results indicate that there is a tradeoff between PM absorption by trees and species diversity
Summary
The World Health Organization (WHO) designated particulate matter (PM) (small particles floating or scattered in the atmosphere) as a first-class carcinogen in 2013. Previous studies reported that long-term, high concentrations of PM can cause cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, resulting in increased mortality [1,2,3,4]. The elderly, and respiratory patients with even brief exposure times to PM or to a low concentration of PM are at increased risk of mortality [5,6,7]. PM pollution is considered one of the critical factors threatening public health. Since cities are densely populated and feature heavy traffic, urban residents have a greater risk of PM exposure. The exposure risk in winter is more severe than in summer because heating systems produce more PM, and air circulation is poor [8,9]
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