These areas, and many more that are important to local communities, will serve a vital purpose with their protection. Greenery absorbs pollution, cleaning the air, water, and soil around it. Natural spaces also moderate temperatures, keeping hot areas cooler and acting as windbreaks. Roots protect soil from erosion and the threat of mudslides, and healthy soil is better able to absorb stormwater and prevent floods. This adds up to climate resilience: mitigating the extreme heat, droughts, storms, and floods that we are increasingly experiencing with global warming - while also absorbing carbon pollution and slowing further climate change.

It also impacts physical and mental health. Spending time in natural areas, on the coast, and around waterways has well-documented benefits to mental health, from stress reduction to decreases in anxiety and depression. They also boost physical health by making the air cleaner and incentivizing exercise, reducing the risk of lung diseases and COVID-19. Economically, green and blue spaces provide a high return for the investment in tree maintenance and trail creation, as well as lifting the outdoor recreation economy. Children’s education also benefits from access to the outdoors, providing cognitive benefits, reducing stress, and enhancing motor and social skills.

Protecting these areas would provide these benefits and more to local communities and visitors, while becoming jewels in the crown of the America the Beautiful initiative to protect 30% of U.S. lands, waters, and ocean by 2030.

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