“For a virtuous circle of water and plants in cities”

2023-08-09 06:05:33

Thanks to studies and experiments, the plant has come out of its ornamental role to reveal its potential in favor of the resilience of the city and the protection of its inhabitants. Communities are today called upon to develop a “vegetal capital” to mitigate the effects of climate change, and maintain acceptable living conditions. This new way of thinking about the benefits of urban nature spaces involves a new engineering of the landscape value chain in the city, led by the public plant service and supported by landscape companies. However, the current droughts impose arbitrations on communities on the use of water resources.

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The equation is however simple: without water, no plant; heat islands are multiplying and the habitability of cities is deteriorating. Prefectural decrees, when they prohibit the watering of natural spaces in the city, thus sign the death warrant of a year of investments and local policies for the renaturation of urban space. This type of decision does not take into account the investment/benefit ratio of plant capital, whose services rendered during extreme climatic episodes are nevertheless proven, expected and sustainable.

Attention to this capital does not tolerate suspension. The plant, if it can be easily set up, needs time to benefit from its benefits in an autonomous way: it takes two years from the planting of a tree, whatever its age, so that the development of its root network makes it possible to reduce watering.

Accessible solutions

Amortizing an investment over just two years for benefits spread over more than fifty years is a performance that has no equivalent in the industrial or technological sectors. Watering, measured and relevant, must be considered as an investment and not as an unnecessary expense. It is now becoming urgent to sanctuary the resources necessary for the survival of the plant capital of cities, so that its effects are effective and beneficial to two-thirds of French people who live in urban areas.

Changing perspective becomes urgent. It is important, of course, not to jeopardize the supply of drinking water to citizens, nor to arbitrate against other services or activities that are also essential, such as agriculture or the cleanliness of cities. Water resources for irrigation are manageable thanks to solutions that can be implemented quickly.

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