Why is urban gardening becoming more and more popular? Over the past 10 to 20 years, urban agriculture has become more popular than before.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (UNFAO), approximately 800 million people practice urban agriculture worldwide.
Everywhere, the governments of different countries are beginning to support urban gardening projects, this is the result of the identification of urban gardening as an answer to some of the problems of urbanization.
Contents
Some urbanization problems
People from rural areas migrate to urban areas for a variety of reasons, including to escape poverty. people are looking for work, prosperity and the search for the “taste of the good life”. But as the population of urban areas increases, so do the problems.
1. Poverty
Being the main reason for the migration of people to urban settings, it is one of the problems of urbanization. As the population increases, the number of poor due to lack of employment increases.
2. Pollution
Urbanization contributes to the level of air pollution in the environment, an example is electricity. Natural gas, one of the processes for creating electricity, releases carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide, these gases are trapped in the atmosphere and in turn pollute the air.
3. Flood
Land use change; building, landscaping, dividing the surface of the land, removing vegetation, etc. caused flooding. According to Geological Research In The United States, “As a result, flood peak flow, volume and frequency have increased in nearby streams.”
4. food
People living in urban areas, due to less agricultural activity, are open to processed, unhealthy and expensive foods. These foods cause various diseases like obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, cancer, etc.
How urban gardening solves these problems
1. Employment
Urban gardening is a great job creation tool in the city, large scale farms will require more than one person to work and it is a job for a large number of people. It also creates business opportunities for farmers, companies, etc.
2. Pollution
Trees and plants in a garden can help reduce carbon dioxide in the air. Through photosynthesis, plants produce oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. They also remove harmful bacteria and chemicals from the air. The soil is protected and nourished with chemicals in the same way when planting with natural fertilizers.
This also benefits the air temperature. The bigger your garden, the more cool air you get, which is good for human health, according to a study by David J. Nowak and Gordon M. Heisler, “Cooler Air Temperatures in Urban Parks can have a significant impact on human health.
During heat waves, which can kill hundreds, parks can offer city dwellers respite from high air temperatures, especially at night. On hot, sunny days, shade from trees can greatly increase human comfort.
3. Flood
Urbanization is one of the main causes of flooding. With buildings, flat surfaces everywhere, it is easier for them to flood. Gardens and trees act as sieves or sponges for rain.
When it rains, the leaves of plants or trees receive the water, this is called interception, this water evaporates into the atmosphere or spills onto the surface of the ground in a process called walkit can also flow into the trunk or stem of the plant (mother stream† When all of these processes take place, flooding is greatly reduced.
4. Food security
“Food security is defined as the means by which all people have physical, social and economic access at all times to sufficient, safe and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and nutrient needs for an active and healthy life. . This definition is in agreement with the United Nations Committee on World Food Security†
Food insecurity is one of the problems facing city dwellers, less nutritious and healthy food. The urban garden makes healthy and nutritious food easier and closer to people. It also improves the quality of life of consumers, they have access to foods that solve some of their health problems, such as obesity and high blood pressure.
conclusion
Urbanization problems and their solutions are not limited to those discussed here.
The solutions that urban gardening brings to urbanization is one of the crucial reasons why it is becoming popular, there are many problems that urbanization attracts and with the increase in population these problems may continue to increase if they are not resolved. What better way to solve the soil problem than to garden!
Read below: 4 reasons why urban agriculture is encouraged in developing countries