The article presents the results of research on the Warsaw Praga Park vegetation based on the i-Tree Eco model. Field work was carried out on 88 test surfaces, 400 m² each, located at 50 meter regular intervals within the park area. The article describes the vegetation structure, with emphasis on trees and shrubs. As regards the trees, number of species, crown coverage, thickness structure, health condition, leaf surface, leaf biomass and the origin of species were estimated. The results of field work concerning the vegetation structures in the Praga Park point out the scale of obtained ecosystem services, which may be expressed in natural units. The issue of ecosystem services is the subject of a separate article from this series.
One condition of rational development of city areas is estimating the value of green and blue infrastructure in addition to the value of technical infrastructure (its value is usually calculated very precisely). Green infrastructure (including trees and shrubbery) is still treated as a free-of-charge unlimited feature, which results in its exclusion from the economic balance of city management. This approach to trees and shrubs was justified when there were no methods of calculating their value. Currently however such methods do exist both in the world and in our country. Using them enables us to evaluate the replacement (structural) value of trees and shrubs. On the basis of structural value it is possible to estimate the accessible ecosystem services such as oxygen production, carbon collection, absorption of pollution, advantages to health, aesthetic values and others. One method designed for estimating structural and functional, and consequently monetary, values of ecosystem services supplied by trees and greenery areas in general is the i-Tree Eco model which enables obtainment of significant and diverse information on distribution and functioning of greenery in cities. This information may constitute an extra source of knowledge about planning and development of city spaces.
Urban forest has a significant impact on the conditions and quality of urban area residents’ life (Novak, Crane, 2008). Benefits from urban vegetation, known in the literature as ecosystem services, are now possible to examine and measure thanks to tools such as I-Tree Eco. Studies on the impact of vast urban green areas on climatic conditions and air quality in the city are becoming more and more popular. The results of these studies indicate that green areas act as a kind of filter catching pollutants and can affect the climate not only around their crowns but also at longer distances ranging from 100 to 500 m from their location (McPerson, Rowntree, 1993). The article presents the results of pilot studies based on the i-Tree Eco method applied for ecosystem services provided by the Park Praski in Warsaw.
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