from Sunday Herald, 14 October 2007
The parks, fields and other green spaces in Scotland's towns and cities are seen as dangerous and ugly by nearly half the population, according to a survey to be published tomorrow.
Almost 50% of the people questioned across the country thought that their local green spaces were unsafe for their children to play in, or for adults to take exercise. Just under half also regarded their green spaces as unattractive.
The survey was carried out for Greenspace Scotland, a government-funded umbrella body trying to improve derelict land in urban areas. Green spaces, it says, are failing to meet the needs of nearly half of Scotland's urban population.
"We’re still failing too many communities," said Greenspace Scotland's chief officer, Julie Procter. "In many places there is still a piecemeal approach to the provision and maintenance of green space and not enough strategic and co-ordinated action."
She added: "For everyone involved in delivering a healthier, safer and greener Scotland, the challenge is to turn the knowledge that green space is good into a reality for everyone living and working in our towns and cities."
Over 1,000 people living in urban areas were interviewed earlier this year by the Edinburgh polling company, Progressive Partnership. The aim was to see how public opinion had changed since an earlier survey in 2004, first reported by the Sunday Herald.
Although perceptions of green spaces were slightly better than three years ago, they was still a "dramatic difference" between people's expectations and reality. The difference was particularly acute in the most deprived communities where expectations were higher and satisfaction lower.
According to the survey, only 56% of people agreed that their local green spaces were safe places for physical activity like jogging or walking the dog, compared to 46% in 2004. Some 55% agreed that they were good places for children to play, compared to 47% in 2004.
A third of those interviewed thought that the quality of their green spaces had deteriorated in the last five years. But 58% said that they used local green facilities at last once a week, compared to 49% in 2004.
"People seem to be using green space more frequently and their expectations of what green space should offer are higher," said Procter. "That's a sign that people do recognise that fresh air and exercise are crucial to our health and well-being."
Physical inactivity risked an "obesity time bomb" in Scotland, she pointed out. "Green spaces are clearly seen as vital components of urban communities, providing local people with space where they can exercise, play and relax."
Many people also wanted their green spaces to be places where they could connect with nature. "But still less than half the people surveyed viewed their local green space as a good place to see wildlife," Procter said. "All in all, there is still so much to achieve."
Greenspace Scotland was set up in 2003 by the government's conservation agency, Scottish Natural Heritage. It works to co-ordinate action to improve green spaces and supports a network of organisations which manage them.
It is helping the Copperworks Housing Co-op transform a large strip of derelict land in Royston, Glasgow, with grass, hedging and wild flowers. In Edinburgh there is a project to turn a huge old quarry in Wester Hailes into a "welcoming" park.
According to Duncan McLaren, the chief executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, it was "heartening" to see improvements in green space. "However, it is quite clear that much more needs to be done to ensure people living in Scotland's deprived communities can share in these improvements," he said.
"While it is important that steps are taken to prevent further loss of urban green space, just as vital is action to rehabilitate areas previously blighted by industry - such as former opencast mines and landfill dumps."
McLaren added: "It is the failure to deliver promises by developers to return such sites to quality green space that often adds to the insult felt by communities forced to live for years beside bad neighbour developments."
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