Proceeding of International Conference on Contemporary Management - 2016 (ICCM-2016), pp 961-976 A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE URBAN GREEN SPACES FOR THE CITY SUSTAINABILITY AND ATTRACTIVENESS: A CASE STUDY OF JAFFNA CITY IN NORTHERN PROVINCE OF SRI LANKA Mathivathany.V ABSTRACT Development should be based on a balanced and harmonious relationship between social needs, economic activities and the environmental services to achieve sustainability of a city. Accordingly, aspects such as the “amount of urban green spaces per inhabitant, “public parks,” are considered to be of significant strategic importance and it making a city livable, pleasant, and attractive for citizens. This too gives a salutary effect on the growth of the City. Urban green parks serve as places of identity, memory, and belonging, enrich human life with meaning and emotions which is a key component of sustainability. Urban parks play a strategic meaning for the quality of life of our increasingly urbanized society. Jaffna city is a fast growing centre in north part of the country. But attention to the natural components and the green spaces of the urban structure is still poor. Therefore this paper aims to study the importance of urban parks for the sustainability of the city. Both secondary and primary data have been gathered. Primary data have been collected through a survey conducted among visitors of the parks. Questionnaires have been distributed in different hours of the day. Basic descriptive statistics and Multi criteria analysis have been applied in spatially. As a result, the majority (almost 78%) of the respondents indicated dissatisfaction with the services and amount of urban green currently present in the Jaffna. Valuation of these green spaces of urban areas should be integrated into project assessments' procedure and be properly accounted for in policy decisions and urban planning strategies. This study helps to City planners, urban designers and decision makers. Keywords: Sustainability, City livable, urbanized society, urban planning, Green spaces 1. INTRODUCTION achieve sustainability of a city, development Urban parks play strategic importance should be based on a balanced and which provide important economic, social harmonious relationship between social and environmental services which are needs, economic activities and the crucial significance for the livability of cities environmental services. Accordingly, and the well being of urban citizens. To aspects such as the “amount of urban green University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka. [email protected] 961 spaces per inhabitant, “public parks,” are In addition to those, urban recreational space considered to be of significant strategic is developed according to the population importance for improving quality of life and density and extent of urban area in the Sri it making a city livable, pleasant, and Lanka. But Jaffna urban area has 43.7 sq.km attractive for citizens. This too gives a land extent which consisting of 131,768 salutary effect on the growth of the City. population. Based on the Public Outdoor Urban green parks serve as places of identity, Recreational Standard, per 1000 population memory, and belonging, enrich human life 1ha recreational area should be as urban area with meaning and emotions which is a key (Jaffna urban area should be allocated 131 ha component of sustainability. Urban parks are land) but in Jaffna availability of total extent the presence of natural assets of a city. of the parks is 13.98 ha and mini children Nowadays, Jaffna city is a fast growing park and play ground is covering 29.52 ha. centre in north part of the country. For the Finally 43.57 ha land is available for the last three decades, due to the unstable recreational space. Therefore this paper situation that prevailed in the North Sri aims to study the importance of urban nature Lanka, there was no proper plan prepared for of the Jaffna city. the development of the Jaffna City. Now, the city is home to a number of educational, The findings of a major literature review are commercial institutions, minor industrial mentioned relating to the urban parks and its units, banks, bus and railway station, hotels benefits to a city. The review considers and other government institutions. Above material from sources that include peer- 100,000 persons are coming for their day to reviewed literature, library and internet. day activities from within the city as well as Urban green spaces supply to cities with other part of the countries as commuters. ecosystem services ranging from Further, number of domestic and maintenance of biodiversity to the international tourists is also coming as regulation of urban climate. Comparing with tourists in seasonally. In holiday times and rural areas, differences in solar input, rainfall seasonal festival time this number show very pattern and temperature are usual in urban high here. But attention to the green spaces areas. Solar radiation, air temperature, wind of the urban structure is still poor. There speed and relative humidity vary were few plans in related public parks for the significantly due to the built environment in urban area. Greeneries also had been cities (Heidt and Neef, 2008). Urban heat destroyed for many purposes due to the island effect is caused by the large areas of unbalanced period. Low appreciation of heat absorbing surfaces, in combination of green spaces is also reflected in the high energy use in cities. Urban heat island maintenance of budget of this town. effect can increase urban temperatures by 5°C (Bolund and Sven, 1999). Therefore, 962 adequate forest plantation, vegetation spaces which will contribute to reduce the around urban dweller's house, management overall CO2 by maintaining or even of water bodies by authorities can help to increasing the ability of CO2 absorption via mitigate the situation. Green spaces that natural ecosystem (Huang et al., 2009). feature good connectivity and act as Urban greeneries provide Biodiversity and “wildlife corridors” or function as “urban Nature Conservation benefit to the city. forests”, can maintain viable populations of Green spaces do functions as protection species that would otherwise disappear from centre for reproduction of species and built environments (Haq, 2011; Byrne and conservation of plants, soil and water Sipe, 2010). Regional green space is based quality. (Francis, 1997). A functional on the protection and optimization of natural network of green spaces is important for the ecological system and actually refers to maintenance of ecological aspects of continuous suburban green space of large sustainable urban landscape, with size. It not only improves the whole greenways and use of plant species adapted ecological environment of the city region to the local condition with low maintenance and its neighbors, and provides important cost, self sufficient and sustainable (Loures support of urban environmental et al., 2007). During the past decade improvement. Furthermore, introduction of research on urban biodiversity has become suburban green space into city also acts as momentous not only because of the the base of ecological balance. In practice, increasing impact of urbanization on natural problems of urban woods and citied ecosystems, but also because of the growing agriculture should be paid sufficient recognition of urban areas as hosts for attention (Wuqiang et al., 2012). innovative ways to conserve and promote biodiversity (Savard et al., 2000). The latter Urban greening can reduce air pollutants is illustrated by various global directly when dust and smoke particles are environmental conventions such as the 2002 trapped by vegetation. Research has shown Wo r l d S u m m i t o n S u s t a i n a b l e that in average, 85% of air pollution in a park Development, the 2007 Curitiba Declaration can be filtered (Bolund and Sven, 1999). on Cities and Biodiversity, and the Global Urban green spaces in over crowded cities Partnership on Cities and Biodiversity can largely reduce the levels of noise launched by among others the United depending on their quantity, quality and the Nations Environment Program (UNEP distance from the source of noise pollution. 2012). Researchers have stated that urban For the cities in fast urbanizing and growing parks, due to their often high levels of habitat economy, country like China should diversity and microhabitat heterogeneity, consider the dynamic form of urban can constitute particularly important expanding to manage effective urban green hotspots for biodiversity in the cityscape, 963 albeit their primary role is recreational and 15% depending on the type of project (Cornelis and Hermy, 2004). (Heidt and Neef, 2008). There are some researchers have been done Urban parks have been viewed as an by researchers related Economic Benefits of important part of urban and community urban greeneries like Energy Savings, water development rather than just as settings for management and Property Value . Plants recreation and leisure. Urban parks have improve air circulation, provide shade and been suggested to facilitate social cohesion they provides a cooling effect and help to by creating space for social interactions lower air temperatures. A park of 1.2 km by (Coley et al., 1997; Van Herzele and 1.0 km can produce an air temperature Wiedemann, 2003; Parr, 2007; Maas et al., between the park and the surrounding city 2009). A study conducted in Helsinki, that is detectable up to 4 km away (Heidt and Finland, indicated that nearly all (97%) city Neef, 2008). A study in Chicago has shown residents participate in some outdoor that increasing tree cover in the city by 10% recreation during the year. Urban green may reduce the total energy for heating and spaces serve as a near resource for cooling by 5 to 10% (Sorensen et al., 1997). relaxation; provide emotional warmth Water management is crucial to cities, (Heidt and Neef, 2008). In Mexico City, the particularly in times of climate change. Bio centrally located Chapultepec Park draws up swales, rain gardens, green roofs and other to three million visitors a week who enjoy a green infrastructure components can help wide variety of activities (Sorensen et al., reduce runoff.