The Spanish city of Barcelona could improve the mental health of more than 30,000 people with an ambitious green space plan. This could result in savings of €45 million per year in expenditures related to mental health problems. According to a study by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. According to the Guardian, the city of Barcelona – a city with one of the highest population and traffic densities in Europe – is currently working on an ambitious push for more green spaces.
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Prevention of mental health problems
The Barcelona project builds on a growing body of research that has linked urban green spaces to better mental well-being and the prevention of depression, anxiety and insomnia. “Green spaces are a huge and underutilized ally,” said Carolyn Darum, a researcher at the Barcelona Institute for Global Health and co-author of the study. “We need to invest much more in preventing disease and creating health and well-being at the source. And that’s where the urban model comes in.”
The starting point for the research was a plan that officials in Barcelona’s Eixample district launched in 2020. The goal was to swap out intersections congested with cars for green spaces that give priority to pedestrians and cyclists. The plan, known as “Green Axes” or “Eixos Verds” in Catalan, ultimately envisages turning every third street in the city into a green zone.
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Only five percent more green spaces are having an effect
Researchers calculated that if fully implemented, the plan could increase green spaces across the city by 5.7 percent. Using a framework provided by previous studies linking green spaces to mental health, they have compiled the figures on the potential impact of the Barcelona plan.
“We found that even though we only increase the green space by about five or six percent, the number of cases of mental health problems decreases quite significantly,” says Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, another co-author of the study. Greening could prevent up to 31,000 cases of “poor mental health,” the results say. The number of visits to mental health specialists would fall by 13 percent and the use of antidepressants by eight percent annually.
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Barcelona suffers from air pollution
However, the researchers point out that the green spaces must be evenly distributed across the city. At the same time, policies are also needed that promote high-quality public transport systems and low-emission zones, as well as strategies to prevent speculation and gentrification. Air pollution is very high in Barcelona, and only about 20 percent of the population have direct access to green spaces. The authorities are not relying on greening in all parts of the city. The research team sees a broad implementation of the plans in Eixample as essential.
According to the Barcelona Institute for Global Health team, the study could have implications for cities beyond Barcelona. “I think a lot of people don’t understand that the urban environment that we live in is a public health intervention and a very important one,” she said. “It’s a very powerful way to create health from the start so fewer people get sick,” Carolyn Folge said.