New York’s Central Park to become a climate laboratory

In 2020, New York City emitted a total of 56.5 million tons of carbon dioxide. Under the city’s net-zero carbon goal – which is formally known as the Diversified Pathway Project – this figure should drop to 6.7 million tonnes by 2050.

According to the Central Park’s website, the city’s trees are estimated to remove one million pounds of carbon dioxide each year, helping New Yorkers to breathe a little easier.

Central Park also plays a crucial role in keeping the city cool, which is important as urban areas experience higher temperatures due to the volume and density of heat-attracting materials like concrete and glass.

Since most New Yorkers live between 10 – 30 minutes from Central Park, scientists want to quantify how much cooling the green space offers for people who visit, as well as how far that cooling capability extends.

Karen Seto, professor of geography and urbanization science at the Yale School of the Environment said that it is clear cities will have a huge role to play in finding climate change solutions.

She continued by saying, ‘We’re hoping to inform policy in terms of how best to manage the assets here in the park … so that the green space can continue to provide cooling relief, cleaning air, etc.’

As major cities begin acknowledging their vulnerability to climate change, similar initiatives have been launched in other parts of the world. For example, London is currently undergoing a £600,000 rewilding project aimed at creating more green spaces and restoring the city’s biodiversity.

Paris also has plans laid out to create ‘urban forests’ and further greenery around its major attractions such as the Hôtel de Ville, Champs-Elysées, and Eiffel Tower.

Sure enough, projects like the one in New York’s Central Park will shed light on the importance of filling cities with nature and methods we can use to protect such spaces in the face of climate change.

Let’s hope that The Central Park Climate Lab influences more cities to follow suit!