This post was a nice change from hearing about all the destruction mankind has brought upon nature in the Northeast. When I was reading it, I wish it was centered on New York so it could be a little more relevant to our lives and the class, but it was interesting nonetheless. I never really thought about how nature exactly was beneficial to us, aside from the fact that plants allow us to breathe. This article listed all sorts of ways that nature does so, and I never would have knew about these things if I didn’t read the article. I thought one of the most interesting services was how nature works against the urban heat island affect that negatively affects cities. Who would have thought that by simply being present, things like trees and water areas can cool cities down to have a great positive impact?
I think that when people think about being green and preserving the environment, they think it is too expensive of an initiative to partake in. But this article showed that the inclusion of natural ecological systems can cut costs. I wondered what exactly the difference would be, though. Additionally, I wonder if the New York City government is aware of these benefits and is making efforts to increase the presence of ecosystems for their service. From the article, it really seemed like these ecosystems make a huge difference in the cities they are in. But it is also important to note a small comment in the conclusion that although nature can do all these wonderful things, it’s important that we do our part in reducing the problems that are being served.
