Reassessing the role of urban green space in air pollution control.

ABSTRACT: The assumption that vegetation improves air quality is prevalent in scientific, popular, and political discourse. However, experimental and modeling studies show the effect of green space on air pollutant concentrations in urban settings is highly variable and context specific. We revisited the link between vegetation and air quality using satellite-derived changes of urban green space and air pollutant concentrations from 2,615 established monitoring stations over Europe and the United States. Between 2010 and 2019, stations recorded declines in ambient NO₂, (particulate matter) PM₁₀, and PM_2.5 (average of -3.14% y^-1), but not O₃ (+0.5% y^-1), pointing to the general success of recent policy interventions to restrict anthrop

SUBMITTER: Venter ZS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10861851 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature