Barcelona City Council has initiated a city-wide program to shade public spaces. The reason: it is getting hotter every year. In fact, the average temperature in Catalonia has climbed two degrees Centigrade, according to a recent scientific study. To boot, cities are often several degrees hotter because of the urban heat island effect. Measures such as shading and using less glass, then, clearly need to be taken in light of climate change.
How will shade be provided in Barcelona? Currently, it’s mostly by erecting awnings such as shade sails, while trees are only being planted in a handful of locations. This is baffling. Shade sails are great on roof terraces or other places where trees can’t grow naturally. But as every Iberian knows, the shade of a tree is much cooler, literally, thanks to its water content. To boot, many trees shed their leaves in winter, letting the sun through when heat is welcome. Their springtime flowers add flourishes of colour, moreover. Nothing beats trees, if you ask me.
So why the preference for awnings? I can think of two reasons. Firstly, our esteemed mayor loves technology, like so many of his voters, so we can assume that he finds trees ‘old fashioned’ and not techy enough. Awnings are artificial and hence predictable, whereas trees are natural and unpredictable. They can suddenly fall over and kill people, as has happened in Barcelona on one recent occasion. Then again, computers and self driving cars are known to crash rather frequently too. Secondly, trees require care and maintenance, which costs money. They need to be watered, and their leaves need to be cleaned up and composted. Birds also like to poop on people beneath trees. But are those reasons to choose awnings over trees?
Meanwhile, trees are being planted in the most absurd places, such as in fake rock planters on kitshy green walls. It would seem that trees are alright only when some tech is involved.
Criticalista 