Rights‐of‐way (ROW) that enable the transport of humans, goods, and energy (eg roads and road verges, railways and embankments, and power lines and the corridors they occupy) cover vast areas and can resemble a species‐rich natural habitat. We examine the value of ROW for biodiversity conservation. Similar to grasslands or heathlands, the green spaces associated with ROW often harbor high numbers of species, including rare plants and animals. There is, however, a risk that ROW can act as ecological traps, by attracting organisms that fail to survive and/or reproduce within ROW green spaces. To date, a focus on documenting species occurrence has left major gaps in our understanding of how life in a ROW influences the survival and reproduction of populations, their biotic interactions, and movements within a broader landscape. Estimating these parameters allows for management to better recognize the potential conservation value of these landscape elements.

Vacant land, a product of population and economic decline resulting in abandonment of infrastructure, has increased substantially in shrinking cities around the world. In Cleveland, Ohio, vacant lots are minimally managed, concentrated within low-income neighborhoods, and support a large proportion of the city's urban forest. We quantified abundance, richness, diversity, and size class of native and exotic tree species on inner-city vacant lots, inner-city residential lots, and suburban residential lots, and used i-Tree Eco to model the quantity and economic value of regulating ecosystem services provided by their respective forest assemblages. Inner-city vacant lots supported three times as many trees, more exotic than native trees, and greater tree diversity than inner-city and suburban residential lots, with the plurality of trees being naturally-regenerated saplings. The urban forest on inner-city vacant lots also had two times as much leaf area and leaf biomass, and more tree canopy cover. The quantity and monetary value of ecosystem services provided by the urban forest was greatest on inner-city vacant lots, with exotic species contributing most of that value, while native taxa provided more monetary value on residential lots. The predominately naturally-regenerated, minimally managed exotic species on vacant land provide valuable ecosystem services to inner-city neighborhoods of Cleveland, OH.

The overall performance of the IR-based test was similar to that of the colorimetric assay and was superior and more economic than other available tests.

Examining the distributional equity of urban tree canopy cover (UTCC) has increasingly become an important interdisciplinary focus of ecologists and social scientists working within the field of environmental justice. However, while UTCC may serve as a useful proxy for the benefits provided by the urban forest, it is ultimately not a direct measure. In this study, we quantified the monetary value of multiple ecosystem services (ESD) provisioned by urban forests across nine U.S. cities. Next, we examined the distributional equity of UTCC and ESD using a number of commonly investigated socioeconomic variables. Based on trends in the literature, we predicted that UTCC and ESD would be positively associated with the variables median income and percent with an undergraduate degree and negatively associated with the variables percent minority, percent poverty, percent without a high school degree, percent renters, median year home built, and population density. We also predicted that there would be differences in the relationships between each response variable (UTCC and ESD) and the suite of socioeconomic predictor variables examined because of differences in how each response variable is derived. We utilized methods promoted within the environmental justice literature, including a multi-city comparative analysis, the incorporation of high-resolution social and environmental datasets, and the use of spatially explicit models. Patterns between the socioeconomic variables and UTCC and ESD did not consistently support our predictions, highlighting that inequities are generally not universal but rather context dependent. Our results also illustrated that although the variables UTCC and ESD had largely similar relationships with the predictor variables, differences did occur between them. Future distributional equity research should move beyond the use of proxies for environmental amenities when possible while making sure to consider that the use of ecosystem service estimates may result in different patterns with socioeconomic variables of interest. Based on our findings, we conclude that understanding and remedying the challenges associated with inequities requires an understanding of the local social-ecological system if larger sustainability goals are to be achieved.

The increase of minimally managed vacant land resulting from population loss and the subsequent removal of infrastructure is a reoccurring feature in shrinking cities around the globe. Due to the low frequency and intensity of management, these spaces create a unique environment for plant colonization, establishment, and succession. Herein we refer to these plants and the habitats they form as urban spontaneous vegetation (USV). As a form of urban green space, USV has the potential to provide a number of ecological and sociological benefits to shrinking cities, such as supporting urban wildlife, enhancing the provision of regulating ecosystem functions and services, connecting residents with nature, and improving human health and well-being. Conversely, USV can also support undesirable animals such as vectors of disease, and due to its wild and disorderly appearance, can evoke negative emotions in residents while signaling community neglect. This review aims to explore the potential ecological and sociological tradeoffs of USV within the context of shrinking cities. Through this evaluation, we aim to inform future planning and management to exploit the benefits offered by this resource while minimizing negative outcomes, thereby leading to the enhanced sustainability of shrinking cities worldwide.

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