- MV cities pass the heat test of environmental aid
Schwerin and Neubrandenburg are estimated by the German Environmental Aid to be in the green zone for climate-appropriate urban planning and offer their residents good protection from summer heat. A relatively moderate proportion of sealed surfaces due to roads, paved squares, and buildings on the one hand, and plenty of urban green on the other, earned both cities a good overall rating from the lobby organization.
Rostock, Greifswald, and Stralsund landed in the middle field. Stralsund's rating was significantly influenced by a lack of trees and shrubs registered there.
Cities in the south perform worse
For their heat check, Environmental Aid had satellite data analyzed and compared the sealed surfaces and green equipment of 190 German cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants. Cities in southern Germany performed particularly poorly, especially Ludwigshafen (Rhineland-Palatinate), Heilbronn (Baden-Württemberg), Regensburg (Bavaria), Worms, and Mainz (both Rhineland-Palatinate).
For example, Environmental Aid classified Detmold, Ratingen (both North Rhine-Westphalia), Potsdam (Brandenburg), and Jena (Thuringia) as exemplary. In the evaluation, Environmental Aid combined sealed surfaces and green volume, with sealed surfaces being given greater weight.
Concerned about the persistent trend towards more concrete
According to the ranking, 24 of the cities examined failed in both categories. Environmental Aid issued green cards to 84 cities with relatively little sealing and plenty of cooling green, including Neubrandenburg and Schwerin.
However, the persistent trend towards more concrete and less green is alarming, it was stated. Given the climate change, green spaces and soils where water can seep in are particularly important, Environmental Aid emphasized.
The organization calls on the federal government to prescribe nationwide standards for greening, for example, schoolyards. Minister of Construction Klara Geywitz (SPD) has just presented a strategy for protection from heat, in which more parks, street trees, and green roofs are also recommended.
Environmental Aid Ranking
The following is added to the Environmental Aid Ranking: Stralsund falls in the middle field due to a lack of trees and shrubs, impacting its overall rating. Additionally, 24 cities failed in both sealed surfaces and green volume categories, but Neubrandenburg and Schwerin earned green cards for their relatively little sealing and ample cooling green.
