| By Denise Winterman
BBC News Magazine |
Parks without grass? It sounds absurd, but in the future climate change is likely to transform our urban green spaces. Think pine trees and wind turbines. What springs to mind when you think of the local park - grass, flowerbeds, roses, squirrels, horse chestnut trees, conkers?
The parks your great-grandchildren will play in are far more likely to have pine trees, palms and wind turbines, experts believe.
As climate change takes hold - with a new Met Office study suggesting humans have fuelled a one-degree Celsius rise in British temperatures in just 45 years - parks will have to undergo drastic changes if they are to survive.
Challenges
They will also play an increasingly vital role in helping to mitigate the effects of global warming. Such issues will be the focus of discussion at a conference in Manchester on Tuesday looking at climate change's likely effect on parks.
 |  As the summers get hotter, grass and traditional flowerbeds will become more and more difficult to sustain  |
Historically, the biggest threat to parks has been funding cut-backs which had led to a serious decline at the end of the 20th Century.
That they became so undervalued is perhaps remarkable considering that on a sunny day a popular park can notch up as many as 10,000 visitors, according to Cabe Space, the national champion for better parks and public services.
Historic parks - which account for just 9% of the total number of parks in the country - such as Kew Gardens in London, attract an estimated 400 million visitors a year.
But parks are again moving up the political agenda and receiving more funding. The decline in quality of green space - including squares, parks and nature reserves - has been halted in most areas, according to a recent report from the National Audit Office.
 Mile End Park has a green bridge |
And they have strong public support. A resounding 91% of the population believe parks improve people's quality of life.
This renewed enthusiasm is reflected in the regeneration of parkland in recent years - with large sums of lottery cash being pumped into many projects. But the work has largely been about restoring parks to their Victorian glory, rather than projecting them forward to the future.
Delegates at Tuesday's conference will be told one of the biggest challenges they face is not neglect and budget restraints, but global warming.
Extremes
As temperatures rise, the familiar flora and fauna of the local park - even down to the grass - is likely to change. The ubiquitous horse chestnut and oak trees will die off and, experts believe, pine trees will probably be dominant.
"While all the restoration work is very important, it is all about historical landscapes and we need to be looking forward to our needs in the 21st Century," says Martin Duffy from GreenSpace, a registered charity dedicated to parks and public spaces, and the conference organiser.
But planning for a future which no one can accurately predict throws up problems.
 Will fountains be in short supply? |
"We are facing some huge challenges," says Mr Duffy. "We can make predictions but no one really knows what the weather and climate in the UK will be in 100 years time."
And when you're planting trees that will be around for years to come, a wrong decision could be hugely costly for future generations.
"Obviously, what trees we plant now in parks now are expected to be around in 50, 60, 70 years time," says Guy Barter, head of horticultural advisory services with the Royal Horticultural Society. "If we get it wrong it will be a very costly mistake environmentally."
Scorched
The extremes of weather are also likely raise big problems, with plants needing to be able to take hot summers and extremely wet winters.
"As the summers get hotter, grass and traditional flowerbeds will become more and more difficult to sustain," says Mr Barter. "We have seen it this year, with huge swathes of scorched ground in many parks. Then in the winter we are likely to see more flash flooding, so drainage will be an issue."
The challenges not only include choosing the plants that can withstand predicted changes in temperature, but also the new pests that warmer and wetter weather will bring.
 Shade will be a vital role of parks |
Parks will also play an increasingly vital role in helping to mitigate the effects of climate change - helping drain increased rainfall in urban areas, says Mr Duffy.
And there will also be changes in how they're used - rising temperatures will drive more people outdoors, but they'll be seeking cover from the sun's rays.
"What people will be looking for is an oasis of shade to take cover from the heat," says Mr Barter. "They are going to become really important to the average person on the street."
Exotic
One park looking firmly forward is Mile End Park in east London. With a history that dates back to 1381, it is undergoing a £25m transformation into an ecological, sustainable urban park. Innovations including earth-sheltered buildings and a wind turbine that generates electricity for - among other things - go-karts.
Manchester City Council is also at the forefront of tackling the issue. It has a devoted climate change officer as part of its Greener City programme, which is aimed at making it the greenest city in the UK. It is also about to launch its tree strategy for the future.
"This is not the result of woolly, green thinking, it is imperative that we take action about climate change and the impact of our public open spaces, it is a huge challenge for the future," says Sarah Davies, director of the programme.
But she adds that not everything is bad news when it comes to the impact on climate change on parks. More exotic species of plants and tree which would not have been viable previously could become common sights across the UK.
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5356370.stm)
