On Tbilisi’s Green Spaces

Interview

Tbilisi was once green, when it was founded as the capital of Georgia more than 15 centuries ago. However, through the vicissitudes of history, most of the forests covering the emplacement of the city have been burned or cut down. Many gardens and parks developed by Georgian kings and noblemen in the 18th century were destroyed by invasions and though, in the soviet era, many parks were laid, most of them nowadays face threats from the city’s urban development and the mushrooming of multi-story blocks. More generally, the parks that exist nowadays are old ones, and there seems to be no will from the City Council to develop new parks simultaneously with urbanization. Added to this that Tbilisi’s population is on the up, with the result that green space in Tbilisi equals about 12 square meters per citizen, half the European standard, the issues of pollution and lack of recreational space becomes apparent.

We met with Tamaz Patarkalashvili, a Doctor at the Center for the Study of Productive Forces and Natural Resources of Georgia at the Technical University. He recently published a work on green spaces and the ecological problems of Tbilisi, and gladly answered our questions on the matter.

How do trees impact on the urban space?

The goals and services that urban forests and green spaces provide are impressive. Trees and green spaces help to keep cities cool, they act like natural filters and moderate city air temperature and moisture; they muffle the noise caused by city traffic, especially at rush hour; they purify city air by intercepting pollutants; they improve the quality of city natural resources, such as soil, water, vegetation and city wildlife. Trees house micro fauna and are a refuge for small animals like squirrels and birds. Trees are symbols of nature and life in harsh city environments with their bare concrete buildings. Trees also have an informative, educational and symbolic function, especially for children.

How do you explain the lack of interest in green spaces in cities such as Tbilisi?

It isn’t a lack of interest from City Hall, but more an issue of corruptive interests. In the last 2-3 years, about 70 live Black Pine trees have been cut down in the center of the city (Saburtalo). Half of them near the old hippodrome and another half on Kazbegi Str.24. The chopping down of a beautiful Deodar Ceder tree, aged about 50-60 years old, was filmed and shared online. All these trees were cut for the construction of new multi-story buildings.

The former hippodrome was moved to a new place and a number of development companies, supported by influential people, were eager to build multi-story buildings in its place. But after strong protest from Tbilisians and some NGOs, these projects were stopped. Since then, nothing has happened and the future of the territory is suspended but I’m sure that those developers are just waiting for the moment to strike again. It’s the perfect location for a beautiful nature park, if only City Council wills it.

What do you think about the transformation of Tbilisi?

Tbilisi has changed more in its architectural view. As to green spaces, I can’t say anything positive. In the Soviet period, Tbilisi took 15th place among 16 capitals of former Soviet Republics with 12 m2 green space per citizen. The European standard of green space per citizen is 25m2, i.e. two times more than in our city. The population of the city then was about 800,000. Today, the population is about 1,300,000 and the green spaces remain the same. If we take this fact into consideration, we can see that green spaces today are too few. If they were enough in the 18th and 19th centuries, after urbanization they clearly can’t satisfy the demands of today.

A solution could be to plan the development of green spaces alongside Tbilisi’s architectural transformation. The majority of buildings in the city center are one-two story and need emergency repair works or demolishing. In the process of rebuilding, green spaces must also be envisaged and planned for as only this will help to improve the ecological condition of the city center.

How long would it take to get results regarding green spaces if City Hall changed its policy today?

I don’t believe that City Hall will change its attitude towards its city green space policy, but if we imagine it happening, then it would take two or three decades to improve the situation a little, because only big trees with large foliage can influence climate characteristics, and to achieve such condition they need at least 30-40 years. In the last 20 years, many multi-story buildings have been built on park territories- in Vake Park, in the lower section of April 9 Park, and elsewhere. The construction of a new hotel three years ago on the Vake Park territory was stopped due to a strong protest from “Guerilla Gardening” activists and other NGOs.

Does this preference towards the development of green spaces over more building need to be accompanied with alternative policies to prevent pollution?

The alternative policy to prevent air pollution and improve the atmosphere of the city, along with the creation of new green spaces, is banning old cars in the city which are considered today the main air pollutants. The majority of these cars were manufactured before 1999. The European standards for city vehicles must be introduced by city authorities.

Are the recent park developments in Tbilisi, such as the Rike and Dedaena parks, steps in the right direction?

Dedaena Park is an old park. Rike Park can be developed, but it takes time for the trees to grow. Besides, this park is located outside the city center, the most polluted part, and so has little influence on it. The influence of trees and green spaces is effective within 100m. All possible construction activities in the existing parks and green spaces of the city must be banned and the removal of live trees within city borders must be considered a crime and punished accordingly.

Do you see growing awareness about these issues among civil society?

Unfortunately, the green awareness of our civil society today is low. It must be taught from early school age. The best example is China, where elementary knowledge about forestry and ecology is taught at school. Moreover, China plans to plant 26 billion trees in the next decade- that’s two trees for every Chinese citizen per year.

David Mongazon