Portland, Oregon: known for its coffee, beer, and beautiful scenery. But more than that Portland is also the most environmentally friendly city in the United State. There are two factors I believe are the most important in creating an environmentally friendly city: the government and the people.
To become environmentally sustainable there needs to be progressive legislation and governmental figures who are willing to use their power to positively impact the city. They have multiple projects and programs in place to help the city stay clean. The first is called “grey to green” and it is a five-year initiative to boost green infrastructure within the city. Green infrastructure means building more green streets, ecoroofs, and rain gardens. Green streets are streets built with vegetation on the sides. This is environmentally friendly because it rains a lot in Oregon and having these green streets means all that runoff is being used to grow plants instead of going to waste. Green streets have many positive effects other than creating a more beautiful city. They also divert rainwater from flooding people’s homes, keep streets safe for bikers, and reduce the possibly polluted runoff from entering any streams. It is a small and inexpensive change that can create a huge difference in a city.
The second part of the “grey to green” project is placing ecoroofs on more buildings. Ecoroofs are much more interesting than they sound. When I began my research I thought it was the same as a sunroof, it is similar but even more eco-friendly. Ecoroofs are basically gardens on the roofs of buildings. Many apartment buildings in the Portland area are starting to use them. It is a normal roof with a waterproof membrane covered in soil and vegetation. It perform many of the same functions as green streets as well as some others like absorbing CO2 from the air. They also provide a habitat for birds and insects that don’t have too many options in urban areas.
The final function of the “green to grey” project is creating rain gardens. Rain gardens are one of the most inexpensive and simple ways to create a greener landscape and successfully utilize stormwater. Rain gardens create a self-irrigating landscape by directing stormwater into a depression in the ground where a garden is built. It is an easy way for everyday people to make a difference. What other ways are the people of Portland doing their part in helping to keep their city number one.
Portland attracts a certain demographic of people; people interested in keeping their environment clean and green. The city has created lots of bike lanes and paths to make it more convenient for its residents to use their bikes instead of cars for transportation. As I said earlier the infrastructure of the roads in the city are built to drain the roads and keep them dry. This makes it easy for those who choose bikes as their main form of transportation to always use them. Bikes are an all around better way to travel then cars. They are less expensive especially when you factor in gas money and insurance. As long as you aren’t travelling too far a distance they are typically faster in a city because you don’t have to wait in traffic. And most importantly they do not emit all of the toxic fumes that cars do. Cars are one of the biggest contributors to the environmental crisis so the littlest changes when it comes to them helps.
Citizens are also widely focused on sustainable eating. They have huge farmer’s markets that encourage residents not only to eat locally but to eat more naturally. There are more than 160 farmers markets with venders from all over the greater Portland area. Not only is this good for the environment but it also incentivizes small farms and businesses to continue growing. Overall, the people in the Portland area are focused on keeping their city green and it is paying off.