2nd February 2017
The Land Trust has this week released a new report, The Hidden Value of Our Green Spaces, which highlights that our green spaces provide even more to society than we often think about.
It shows that our green spaces are more than just places for recreation or to help wildlife thrive – they also provide important functions, such as woodlands absorbing pollution and locking up carbon, which cleans our air and wetlands storing water, slowing the flow and helping reduce the risk of flooding.
These functions help reduce costs on local and wider communities, such as to the NHS, other public sector services and local businesses.
This report has taken a ‘natural capital accounting‘ approach to translate these benefits in financial terms (taking into account the physical land, the habitats, the quality of the land, how it is used and managed).
Since this is a common measure of value, we believe that by talking in this language will help society to recognise and understand how well managed green spaces contribute to a strong economy.
Our report aims to help us to:
Speaking at the Greater Manchester Natural Capital Annual Conference on Wednesday, 1st February, Euan Hall, CEO of the Land Trust said “We’ve been transforming and improving land for community benefit for over 10 years, adding value, making a real difference to real people. It’s fantastic to be able to demonstrate the value in this way, helping us to continue championing well managed green spaces and all the benefits they bring.”
The report features two case studies – Beam Parklands in Dagenham and Silverdale Country Park near Stoke on Trent – to show how sustainable management translates into economic value for the local area.
Find out more and download the report at: https://thelandtrust.org.uk/the-land-trust-charitable-aims/thebenefits/
This report has been produced with support from Groundwork West Midlands, London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Ranger services, Interserve Consulting and eftec.
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