The week is an opportunity to highlight how our parks boost wellbeing, provide community connections and are powerful tools in the fight against climate change, reducing urban heat by providing natural shade, lowering flood risks and supporting biodiversity.
Climate breakdown
This year’s parks week is also an opportunity to highlight the challenges that parks face due to record temperatures caused by the climate breakdown as the fourth heatwave of the year sees the mercury rising to over 30c again this week.
The council is working to managing the impacts of the extreme heat and very low rainfall which is affecting both the wildlife and plant life. Falling water levels have been seen in lakes and ponds across the borough impacting fish, amphibians, aquatic invertebrates and birds.
Alongside the Environment Agency the Lambeth parks team are monitoring water levels, ecological conditions and oxygen levels, acting where possible to tackle environmental impacts while also planning for the future in which climate change is expected to worsen.
Word from the Cabinet
Cllr Natalie Kane, Lambeth’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Inclusion, Democracy and Culture, said: “Our parks are vital to life in Lambeth and hugely valued by both the council and our local communities. They are visited by more than seven million people a year, so I’m delighted that we are taking the chance to join Love Parks Week to celebrate them.
“It’s also important to highlight how the climate breakdown is having a very direct impact locally putting huge pressure on our parks and open spaces, creating parched soil, falling water levels and stress on the whole local ecosystem.
“We are working hard to do all we can to manage the issues and are focused on doing all we can to both manage the current challenge and future proof our parks against the new reality of climate change.”
In terms of climate adaptation, the council has steadily increased the amount of naturalised open space land to almost 40 per cent and ended grass cutting grass under tree canopies to support biodiversity.
Bee Road project
The council also has a Bee Roads project that has seen wildflower meadows created alongside roadsides, and run a huge tree-planting programme featuring species that can better withstand drier weather and a drainage programme to help stop flooding from heavy rain.
Issues that have arisen as a result of the extended hot and dry weather include resident swans in Lambeth and across south London experiencing a higher than usual number of cygnets dying. The causes are unknown, but lower water levels and the extended hot weather are thought to be playing a role.
As well as running national Love Parks Week, Keep Britain Tidy also issue Green Flag Awards for well managed parks and open spaces. Last month three more Lambeth-managed parks received Green Flag Awards, bringing the total to 30, highlighting that the borough continues to have exceptional green spaces.
For more information
For more information on Lambeth Parks visit lambeth.gov.uk/parks and for more information on Love Parks Week visit keepbritaintidy.org/loveparks.
