Depave Chicago

School allows children to grow intellectually and emotionally, and growing trees can help! A 2019 study by our colleagues at the University of Illinois Landscape Architecture investigated the correlation between tree canopy and academic performance at 624 public Illinois high schools. The researchers found that ACT scores and college readiness were both positively impacted when there were areas of tree density within 1 mile of the school.

Chicago public schools are covered in asphalt that could be depaved and replaced with playgrounds, outdoor classrooms, and small urban forests!

Li, Dongying, Yen-Cheng Chiang, Huiyan Sang, and William C. Sullivan. “Beyond the School Grounds: Links between Density of Tree Cover in School Surroundings and High School Academic Performance.” Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 38 (February 2019): 42–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ufug.2018.11.001.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) allocates $369-Billion for climate with $60B for environmental justice, including $3B for community-led projects and $315.5M for monitoring air quality "so that communities know exactly what’s in the air they breathe, with specific funds for schools and those living near polluting industry" but the IRA also contains a potential weakening of NEPA, the federal law "that gives communities a voice in what happens to the environment around them." For a complete summary, check out this article by environmental law NGO Earthjustice

What the Inflation Reduction Act Means for Climate The bill would be a huge step forward in the fight to preserve a livable planet.

Unfun fact: the binding agent used in asphalt paving is a petroleum byproduct, coming out of the oil refining process. As asphalt erodes and is heated by the sun, pollutants are released into the environment. Asphalt also collects toxic substances like motor oil which are then washed directly into rivers and lakes when it rains.

Depaving allows for water to filter directly into the ground, filtering light pollutants through natural processes via plants and aggregates. If your community has a space it would like to depave, please check our project criteria at depavechicago.org and submit a proposal form!

This Tuesday we continue to feel the heat here in Chicago - and we want to talk about "conundrum" of air conditioning! Extreme heat means increased use of air conditioning. This demands additional electrical power resulting in air pollution containing sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, mercury, and other toxins.

Pollution goes up, acid rain comes down polluting waterways and urban areas. Most of us don't think about cranking up our AC units. But the other concerning side of UHI is that not everyone has air conditioning! So the ways that neighborhoods are designed for tree canopy matters immensely to helping to offset heat for anyone living without AC.

We like to think of depaving as and we are eager to select a pilot Depave Chicago site from which we can template a design response to heat. By removing and replacing asphalt pavement with nature-based green infrastructure we're taking a necessary step to beat the heat and reduce the symptoms created by Urban Heat Island Effect. Learn more by visiting depavechicago.org and filling out our project proposal form!

(Image credit: U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyv & The New York Times)