Environmental Benefits
Parks and open spaces can preserve and buffer vital land and water resources and create opportunities for low-impact environmental management practices.
Parks maintain green space to help filter and reduce stormwater run-off from developed areas.
Parks can help to protect significant historic features of the natural landscape.
Neighbhorhood parks and nearby open spaces can help to reduce travel time to outlying recreation areas and reduce pollution caused by vehicles.
Parks with healthy tree canopies can help capture carbon dioxide and other polluting gases, helping to maintain local air quality.
Parks provide important venues for environmental education and community-based environmental stewardship activities.
Parks and open spaces can provide important habitat for plants and animals.
A well-connected parks system supports wildlife movement and is essential to the life cycles of some species.
