Growing Gardens in Shrinking Cities: A Solution to the Soil Lead Problem?

Abstract

Abstract:As cities shrink, they often leave a patchwork of vacancy on the landscape. The maintenance of vacant lands and eventual transformation to sustainable land uses is a challenge all cities face, but one that is particularly pronounced in shrinking cities. Vacant lands can support sustainability initiatives, specifically the expansion of urban gardens and local food production. However, many shrinking cities are the same aging cities that have experienced the highest soil lead burdens from their industrial past as well as the historic use of lead-based paint and leaded gasoline. Elevated soil lead is often viewed as a barrier to urban agriculture and managing for multiple ecosystem services, including food production and reduced soil lead exposure, remains a challenge. In this paper, we argue that a shift in framing the soil lead and gardening issue from potential conflict to potential solution can advance both urban sustainability goals and support healthy gardening efforts. Urban gardening as a potential solution to the soil lead problem stems from investment in place and is realized through multiple activities, in particular (1) soil management, including soil testing and the addition of amendments, and (2) social network and community building that leverages resources and knowledge.

People or place? Neighborhood opportunity influences community garden soil properties and soil-based ecosystem services

“…Furthermore, garden organizations arrange community educational events like composting workshops to boost the knowledge of the gardening community (Wakefield et al 2007). Gardener bottom-up interactions, or top-down institutional support can thereby provision ecosystem services in less advantaged communities (Schwarz et al 2016). Indeed, our personal observations in these gardens match with previous findings.…”

“…In order to increase urban agricultural soil functioning, urban planners and urban gardeners are faced with the task of remediating soil degradation (Schwarz et al 2016), building up soil fertility, and increasing soil water holding capacity (Surls et al 2014) through soil management. In urban and rural agroecosystems alike, soil functioning is the ability of soils to conduct ecological and hydrological processes like nutrient cycling, decomposition, and water cycling (Karlen et al 1997;Arshad and Martin 2002).…”

The geography of urban agriculture: New trends and challenges

“…More specifically, they suffer from a certain level of air pollution and soil contamination from previous as well as current activities. These concerns stem from the fact that urban or peri-urban soils may be contaminated to some extent, particularly the vacant soils or lands located near industrial sites or near roadways loaded with heavy traffic, also organic waste as a potential source for compost might then contain some traces of health and environmental risk substances (Nehls et al, 2015;Säumel et al, 2012;Schwarz et al, 2016). Second, urban agriculture may also contribute to the improvement of but also to the deterioration of urban environments, and it contributes to the increase of carbon footprint if not planned and practised wisely and in an environmentally friendly way (Mok et al, 2014;Duží et al, 2014).…”

Vacant urban lot soils and their potential to support ecosystem services

“…First, our findings are not meant to address all uses; site-specific evaluations would be necessary to judge the appropriateness of a site for particular uses. For example, these vacant lots would likely support growing vegetables from a soil quality perspective; however, this use would require further information regarding protecting human health as a result of this activity, specifically it would also be necessary to test soil lead levels (Schwarz et al 2016). Second, these two measures of soil quality and the resulting interpretation as soil's support for plant growth use the same approach taken for agronomic evaluations that seek to maximize crop yields (e.g., Andrews et al 2002).…”