There was a study published recently by the University of Switzerland that says planting trees is our best strategy of countering the impacts of climate change. Specifically, the study recommends that a trillion trees get planted worldwide. This amount of trees would capture 800 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide from our atmosphere (25 years worth of carbon pollution).
Bringing this home, Canada was identified as one of 6 countries that have the space and climate to help achieve this goal (along with Russia, Australia, Brazil, China and the United States).
Plants have a remarkable effect on the environment. This is even more pronounced in an urban environment where a lot of environmental damage is being done. In addition to sequestering carbon, plants:
- Act as natural filters for greenhouse gasses (e.g. Ozone, Sulfur dioxide, Nitrogen dioxide, Carbon monoxide) and particulate matter.
- Can detoxify pollutants like heavy metals, hydrocarbons and oil found in soil through a process called phytoremediation.
- Expansive green spaces can reduce a city’s temperature by 4.4 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Strategically placed vegetation can reduce noise pollution by 15 decibels.
Last year Para Space planted over 68,014 permanent plants (not including annual flowers). At this rate we will plant over 1 million plants over the next 10 years. Although that is only a drop in the bucket when it comes to the 1 trillion needed worldwide, it will be impactful for our city and the 36,187 homes that we are contracted to maintain.
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