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Forskningsartikel2021Vetenskapligt granskadÖppen tillgång

Beyond 'trees are good': Disservices, management costs, and tradeoffs in urban forestry

Roman, Lara A.; Conway, Tenley M.; Eisenman, Theodore S.; Koeser, Andrew K.; Ordonez Barona, Camilo; Locke, Dexter H.; Jenerette, G. Darrel; Ostberg, Johan; Vogt, Jess

Sammanfattning

The provision of ecosystem services is a prominent rationale for urban greening, and there is a prevailing mantra that 'trees are good'. However, understanding how urban trees contribute to sustainability must also consider disservices. In this perspective article, we discuss recent research on ecosystem disservices of urban trees, including infrastructure conflicts, health and safety impacts, aesthetic issues, and environmentally detrimental consequences, as well as management costs related to ecological disturbances and risk management. We also discuss tradeoffs regarding species selection and local conservation concerns, as well as the central role of human perception in the interpretation of ecosystem services and disservices, particularly the uncritical assertion that 'everybody loves trees'. Urban forestry decision-making that fails to account for disservices can have unintended negative consequences for communities. Further research is needed regarding life cycle assessments, stakeholder decision-making, return-on-investment, and framings of services and disservices in urban forestry.

Nyckelord

Ecosystem disservices; Green infrastructure; Negative synergies; Positive synergies; Urban ecosystems; Urban sustainability

Publicerad i

AMBIO: A Journal of the Human Environment
2021, Volym: 50, sidor: 615-630
Utgivare: SPRINGER

    Globala målen

    SDG11 Göra städer och bosättningar inkluderande, säkra, motståndskraftiga och hållbara
    SDG16 Främja fredliga och inkluderande samhällen för hållbar utveckling, tillhandahålla tillgång till rättvisa för alla samt bygga upp effektiva, och inkluderande institutioner med ansvarsutkrävande på alla nivåer

    UKÄ forskningsämne

    Skogsvetenskap
    Kulturgeografi
    Landskapsarkitetktur

    Publikationens identifierare

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13280-020-01396-8

    Permanent länk till denna sida (URI)

    https://res.slu.se/id/publ/108217