A systematic review of multi-dimensional quality assessment tools for urban green spaces.

We conducted a systematic review of quality assessment tools for urban green spaces to evaluate their replicability, comparability and validity. We assessed the characteristics of 15 published, multi-dimensional, direct observation tools regarding: publication, development, features and included dimensions. Even though all tools show acceptable inter-rater variability, there is a notable variability in their characteristics, from required time to conduct the assessment to the number of included items. Additionally, some specific dimensions are underrepresented, and the study units' definitions are feeble. We showcased the need for new tools that are more comprehensive and include more consistent reporting measures.

How community resources mitigate the association between household poverty and the incidence of adverse childhood experiences.

OBJECTIVES: To assess what proportion of the association between household low income and incidence of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) would be eliminated if all households had access to housing, transportation and childcare services, breastfeeding counselling, and parks. METHODS: Using Growing Up in Scotland birth cohort data (N = 2816), an inverse probability-weighted regression-based mediation technique was applied to assess associations between low-income status (< £11,000 in 2004/5), resource access, and cumulative 8-year ACE incidence (≥ 1, ≥ 3 ACEs). Resource access was measured based on households' self-reported difficulties (yes/no) in accessing housing, transportation, childcare, and breastfeeding counselling, and park proximity (within 10 min from the residence). RESULTS: The protective effects of resources were heterogeneous. Only access to transportation was associated with lower ACE incidence in both low- and higher-income households. If all had access to transportation, 21% (95% CI 3%, 41%) of the income-based inequality in incidence of 3 or more ACEs could be eliminated. CONCLUSIONS: While second best to the elimination of child poverty, measures to improve families' access to community resources such as transportation may mitigate the effects of poverty on ACE incidence.

Assessment of Town and Park Characteristics Related to Physical Activity in the Lower Mississippi Delta.

INTRODUCTION: Our objective was to determine aspects of the built environment that may have contributed to the low levels of physical activity reported in both the gestational and postnatal periods by women participating in a diet and physical activity intervention in the rural Lower Mississippi Delta. METHODS: The built environments of 12 towns were measured by using the Rural Active Living Assessment tools and the Community Park Audit Tool. Correlations between town assessment scores and town size variables were computed by using Kendall τ coefficient. The street distance from a participant's home address to the nearest park was computed by using network analysis in ArcGIS. RESULTS: Rural Active Living Assessment scores were low with mean values between 0% (town policy) and 68% (parks and playgrounds) of the highest possible scores. The mean (standard deviation) number of parks per town was 2.6 (3.2), and 55% of the 31 parks were in the 2 largest towns. Most parks (87%) had a single amenity while 1 park had more than 4 amenities. Distance from a participant's home to the nearest park ranged from less than 0.1 to 8.8 miles (mean [standard deviation], 1.2 [1.8]). CONCLUSION: These 12 Lower Mississippi Delta towns scored low on assessments of physical environment features and amenities, town characteristics, and programs and policies associated with physical activity in rural communities. To increase the physical activity levels of rural residents, it may be necessary to first improve the built environment in which they live.

Socioeconomic and race/ethnic disparities in observed park quality.

BACKGROUND: Though park presence and access disparities are well studied for their associations with physical activity (PA), disparities in the availability and quality of amenities and facilities within parks have been infrequently examined. METHODS: Five hundred forty-three parks from 472 block groups in the Seattle, WA and Baltimore, MD regions were audited using the Environmental Assessment of Public Recreation Spaces (EAPRS) to assess presence and quality (e.g., condition, cleanliness) of amenities (e.g., restrooms, seating) and facilities (e.g., fields, courts). General linear model regressions investigated Census 2000-derived neighborhood race/ethnicity and income main effect and interactive relationships with 7 park quality summary scores: 1) trails, 2) open space, 3) sports facilities, 4) PA facilities count, 5) PA facilities quality, 6) aesthetics, and 7) overall amenities, controlling for park size. The regions were analyzed separately due to differing race/ethnicity distributions. RESULTS: In the Seattle region, neighborhood income was significantly negatively associated with sports quality score (p < .043), PA facilities total count (p < .015) and the overall amenities quality score (p < .004) (unexpected direction). In the Baltimore region, neighborhood race/ethnicity (percent White/non-Hispanic) was significantly positively related to the open spaces quality score (p < .011) (expected direction). A significant income-by-race/ethnicity interaction was found for PA facilities quality (p = .014), with high-percent minority neighborhoods having higher quality parks in high- vs. low-income neighborhoods, yet was opposite in mostly White/non-Hispanic neighborhoods. The other income-by-race/ethnicity interaction was for overall amenities quality score (p = .043), where scores in high-percent minority neighborhoods were best in high- vs. low-income neighborhoods. There was little difference in scores within mostly White or mixed neighborhoods by income. CONCLUSIONS: Patterns of association of neighborhood race/ethnicity and income with park qualities differed between regions. In the Seattle region, "equitable differences" were found, where lower income neighborhoods had better park quality on average. In the Baltimore region, park quality was more consistently negatively associated with income and race/ethnic diversity, and complex interactions of race/ethnicity by income were detected. These findings emphasize the need to explore other factors that may explain variations in park quality, like local policy, citizen involvement in park decision-making, park funding and allocation, sources of funding and park priorities.

Are Food Deserts Also Play Deserts?

Although food deserts are areas that lack easy access to food outlets and considered a barrier to a healthy diet and a healthy weight among residents, food deserts typically comprise older urban areas which may have many parks and street configurations that could facilitate more physical activity. However, other conditions may limit the use of available facilities in these areas. This paper assesses the use of parks in two Pittsburgh food desert neighborhoods by using systematic observation. We found that while the local parks were accessible, they were largely underutilized. We surveyed local residents and found that only a minority considered the parks unsafe for use during the day, but a substantial proportion suffered from health limitations that interfered with physical activity. Residents also felt that parks lacked programming and other amenities that could potentially draw more park users. Parks programming and equipment in food desert areas should be addressed to account for local preferences and adjusted to meet the needs and limitations of local residents, especially seniors.

Bioaccessibility, sources and health risk assessment of trace metals in urban park dust in Nanjing, Southeast China.

Arsenic, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, V, and Zn total concentrations and bioaccessibilities in 15 urban park dust samples were determined. The oral bioaccessibility measured by the Simple Bioaccessibility Extraction Test (SBET) decreased in the order of Pb>Cd>Zn>Mn>Cu>Co>V>Ni>As>Cr. The Tomlinson pollution load index (PLI) and geoaccumulation index (I(geo)) were calculated to evaluate the pollution extent to which the samples were contaminated. Sources were identified using principal component analysis and Pb isotope compositions. Most elements except Co and V were considered to mainly originate from anthropogenic sources. Non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks to humans through urban park dust exposure were assessed using the oral bioaccessibilities of the elements. Ingestion was the main pathway for non-carcinogenic risk. The hazard quotients were below the safe level (=1) for all elements, however, Pb (0.154) and As (0.184) posed potential higher risks to children than adults. The carcinogenic effects occurring were below the acceptable level (10(-4)) for As and <10(-6) for Cd, Co, Cr, and Ni.

Perceptions of risk in communities near parks in an African biodiversity hotspot.

Understanding conservation and livelihood threats in park landscapes is important to informing conservation policy. To identify threats, we examined perceived risks of residents living near three national parks in Uganda. We used cross-sectional household data to document, rank, and measure severity of perceived risks. Three risk categories, grouped into protected area, climate, and health, were cited by 80 % of respondents and received the highest severity scores. Elevation, proximity to the park, local forest loss, recent population change, and measures of poverty were the most important variables in predicting whether or not an individual identified these risks as the most or second most severe risk. Health issues were cited throughout the landscape, while problems attributed to climate (mainly insufficient rainfall) were reported to be most severe farther from the park. Increased population density was associated with increased perceived risk of health challenges, but decreased perceived risks attributed to the park and climate. Participatory risk mapping provides the opportunity to make standardized comparisons across sites, to help identify commonalities and differences, as a first step to examining the degree to which conservation management might address some of these local challenges and where mitigation techniques might be transferable between different sites or conflict scenarios.

Effects of extreme natural events on the provision of ecosystem services in a mountain environment: The importance of trail design in delivering system resilience and ecosystem service co-benefits.

A continued supply of ecosystem services (ES) from a system depends on the resilience of that system to withstand shocks and perturbations. In many parts of the world, climate change is leading to an increased frequency of extreme weather events, potentially influencing ES provision. Our study of the effects of an intense rainfall event in Gorce National Park, Poland, shows: (1) the intense rainfall event impacted heavily on the supply of ES by limiting potential recreation opportunities and reducing erosion prevention; (2) these negative impacts were not only restricted to the period of the extreme event but persisted for up to several years, depending on the pre-event trail conditions and post-event management activities; (3) to restore the pre-event supply of ES, economic investments were required in the form of active repairs to trails, which, in Gorce National Park, were an order of magnitude higher than the costs of normal trail maintenance; and (4) when recreational trails were left to natural restoration, loss of biodiversity was observed, and recovery rates of ES (recreation opportunities and soil erosion prevention) were reduced in comparison to their pre-event state. We conclude that proper trail design and construction provides a good solution to avoid some of the negative impacts of extreme events on recreation, as well as offering co-benefits in terms of protecting biodiversity and enhancing the supply of regulating services such as erosion prevention.

The Measurement of Subjective Value and Its Relation to Contingent Valuation and Environmental Public Goods.

Environmental public goods--including national parks, clean air/water, and ecosystem services--provide substantial benefits on a global scale. These goods have unique characteristics in that they are typically "nonmarket" goods, with values from both use and passive use that accrue to a large number of individuals both in current and future generations. In this study, we test the hypothesis that neural signals in areas correlated with subjective valuations for essentially all other previously studied categories of goods (ventromedial prefrontal cortex and ventral striatum) also correlate with environmental valuations. We use contingent valuation (CV) as our behavioral tool for measuring valuations of environmental public goods. CV is a standard stated preference approach that presents survey respondents with information on an issue and asks questions that help policymakers determine how much citizens are willing to pay for a public good or policy. We scanned human subjects while they viewed environmental proposals, along with three other classes of goods. The presentation of all four classes of goods yielded robust and similar patterns of temporally synchronized brain activation within attentional networks. The activations associated with the traditional classes of goods replicate previous correlations between neural activity in valuation areas and behavioral preferences. In contrast, CV-elicited values for environmental proposals did not correlate with brain activity at either the individual or population level. For a sub-population of participants, CV-elicited values were correlated with activity within the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, a region associated with cognitive control and shifting decision strategies. The results show that neural activity associated with the subjective valuation of environmental proposals differs profoundly from the neural activity associated with previously examined goods and preference measures.

Park proximity, quality and recreational physical activity among mid-older aged adults: moderating effects of individual factors and area of residence.

BACKGROUND: The transition from active employment to retirement is a potentially critical period for promoting maintenance or development of recreational physical activity in older age. Park proximity and quality might be important correlates of recreational physical activity in this age group. However, research on park-physical activity relationships among mid-older aged adults is limited and inconclusive. Furthermore, while knowledge of individual moderators of park-physical activity relationships is crucial for tailoring interventions, this knowledge is also limited. We investigated relationships between perceived park proximity, park quality and recreational physical activity among mid-older aged adults. Additionally, we examined the potential moderating effects of gender, education level, retirement status, functional limitations and area of residence on these relationships. METHODS: Self-reported data on demographics, functional limitations, park proximity, park quality, recreational walking and other recreational moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) were collected among 2700 Australian adults (57-67 years) in 2012. Objective information on area of residence was collected. To examine associations of park-related variables with recreational walking and other recreational MVPA, zero-inflated negative binomial (ZINB) regression models were used. RESULTS: Park proximity significantly interacted with retirement status; non-retired participants who reported living near a park were more likely to participate in recreational walking, whereas no relationship was observed in retired participants. Among those who walked for recreation, higher park quality was related to more weekly minutes of recreational walking. No significant relationships with other recreational MVPA and no moderating effects of gender, education level, functional limitations and area of residence were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Parks may stimulate engagement in recreational walking among non-retirees and more walking among those who already walk. Future research should investigate which environmental factors relate to engagement in recreational walking among retirees and examine whether improvements in park quality actually lead to increases in mid-older aged adults' recreational walking.

The associations between park environments and park use in southern US communities.

PURPOSE: To document park use and park and neighborhood environment characteristics in rural communities, and to examine the relationship between park characteristics and park use. METHODS: The System for Observing Play and Recreation in Communities measured use in 42 target areas across 6 community parks in May 2010 and October 2010. Direct observation instruments were used to assess park and neighborhood environment characteristics. Logistic regression was used to determine the relationship between the condition, number of amenities, and number of incivilities in a target area with target area use. FINDINGS: Ninety-seven people were observed across all parks during May 2010 data collection and 116 people during October 2010 data collection. Low park quality index scores and unfavorable neighborhood environment characteristics were observed. There was a significant positive association between number of incivilities in a target area and target area use (OR = 1.91; 95% CI: 1.09-3.38; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS: The number of people observed using the parks in this study was low, and it was considerably less than the number observed in other studies. The objective park and neighborhood environment characteristics documented in this study provide a more comprehensive understanding of parks than other studies. Further examining the complex relationship between park and neighborhood environment characteristics and park use is important, as it can inform park administrators and city planners of characteristics that are best able to attract visitors.