CITY FIGHTS CRIME AND MENTAL ILLNESS WITH NATURAL GRASS
By Suz Trusty Te best tool to fight crime may be a lawnmower.
Tat’s the opening line of the article, “Tis city fights crime with gardening,” by Roni Dengler that was published in Science Magazine last February (
http://www.sciencemag. org/news/2018/02/city-fights-crime-gardening). Dengler went on to report, “Tat’s the conclusion of a new study, which shows that sprucing up vacant lots by doing as little as picking up trash and cutting the grass curbed gun violence in poor neighborhoods in a major U.S. metropolis by nearly 30 percent.”
Te research project supported two studies simultaneously, the one on crime which is referenced above, and one on the impact of green spaces on mental health.
Melissa Breyer addressed the second study in her article, “A new study measured the mental health of Philadelphia residents before and after blighted lots had been converted into green spaces.” It appeared online in July at https://
www.treehugger.com/urban-design/amazing-things--
happened-when-206-vacant-lots-were-landscaped.html.
Breyer reported: “Almost one in five American adults report some form of mental illness; more than 16 million adults experience depression alone every year.” And, “Noting that ‘spending time and living near green spaces have been associated with various improved mental health outcomes, including less depression, anxiety, and stress,’ a group of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania set out to determine if by changing the places near where people live, they could affect change in mental health outcomes.”
Vacant lots are abandoned property often overgrown with vegetation and littered with trash. Te researchers reported they make up about 15 percent of land in cities. Too often, these lots serve as sites for selling and using drugs, which can lead to other criminal activity, including firearm violence.
Te studies involved 541 blighted vacant lots in Philadelphia. Tey were divided into three categories: approximately one-third were left as they were; one- third cleared of trash, followed by limited mowing where possible and “regular monthly maintenance.” One-third were given a “greening intervention.” Tose lots were cleared of trash, graded, then hydroseeded. A few trees were added and a one-meter (3.28 ft.) tall wooden fence, with multiple gateless openings, installed across the front or around the perimeter of the lot. Tat was followed by “regular monthly maintenance,” which included mowing. Te researchers reported minimal costs for the “greening
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Just one model of possibly the best tool to fight crime. Photo by Steve Trusty.
intervention,” with the initial makeover $5.00 per square meter (10.76 sq. ft.) and the upkeep averaging just 50 cents for the same area.
Turfgrass producers and others well-aware of the benefits of natural grass won’t find the conclusions of either study surprising.
Te crime study reported a statistically significant—58 percent—reduction in peoples’ fear of going outside due to safety concerns and a 76 percent increase in their use of outside spaces.
Te mental health study found that those living within a quarter-mile radius of the improved lots had an average 41.5 percent decrease in feelings of depression and a nearly 63 percent decrease in self-reported poor mental health compared to those who lived near the lots that had not been improved. For areas below the poverty line, feelings of depression among residents who lived near the newly green lots decreased by more than 68 percent.
Te researchers reported the vacant lot greening interventions were explicitly chosen because they were inexpensive and provided “basic amenities” to existing neighborhoods they otherwise would not have had. Te informal and accessible turfgrass recreation space was used and enjoyed, based on the accumulation of picnic tables, grills, toys, and recreational equipment
Te researchers stated, “Our study shows that direct changes to vacant urban spaces may hold great promise in breaking the cycle of abandonment, violence and fear in our cities and do so in a cost-effective way that has broad, citywide scalability.” Such changes also may create greater recognition of, and appreciation for, the impact of natural grass.
p Suz Trusty is co-editor of Turf News. TPI Turf News September/October 2018
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