Community Acceptance of Natural Remediation Methods in Baltimore, Md
Open Access
- Author:
- Stauffer, Kyle D
- Graduate Program:
- Landscape Architecture
- Degree:
- Master of Science
- Document Type:
- Master Thesis
- Date of Defense:
- December 12, 2013
- Committee Members:
- Mallika Bose, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Brian A Orland, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor
Barry Kew, Thesis Advisor/Co-Advisor - Keywords:
- Brownfields
phytoremediation
natural remediation
landscape architecture
community acceptance
Baltimore
Risk Perception - Abstract:
- Partly due to declining industry and population, the city of Baltimore, MD is left with a brownfield problem - currently containing an estimated 1500 potentially harmful contaminated sites (brownfields). Even though some public funding is available to address these sites, the average cost of assessment and remediation using traditional systems is roughly $211,000 per acre – causing public funding to fall far short of the task (DeSousa 2002). This points to a need for solutions that are cost effective and easy to implement. Phytoremediation (using plants to absorb pollution) can be such a solution. While not applicable on all sites, phytoremediation is often far less expensive – up to 1/3 of the cost of traditional remediation techniques such as concrete capping and dig and dump (removing contamination and taking it off site). However, brownfield sites being renewed through phytoremediation tend to look messy and unkempt (Schnoor 1995, 1997; Rafson & Rafson 1999). Since these regenerative landscapes are often seen by the public as “raw” and “messy”, this research examines the question – how would the community of Baltimore relate to potential phytoremediation systems in their neighborhood? Available research on brownfields and phytoremediation largely addresses either technical issues of remediation or the theoretical underpinnings of community response to urban nature. This exploratory research synthesized these two research themes and identified 3 key factors that are most likely to impact community acceptance of natural remediation: risk level, cultural cues used in the design of the site, and knowledge/information about the remediation process. In order to asses community acceptance of phytoremediation sites, a survey instrument was developed in which brownfield remediation strategies were displayed visually (using photoreal renderings of each solution) with varying degrees of risk (low to high) and varying cultural cues ranging along a continuum from completely natural to completely orderly. Additionally, two survey versions were developed: one with information associated with each image and one without. The version with information was given to one group of participants and one without information was given to a separate group. Study participants were then asked to rank their acceptance of each proposed solution. Participants also answered questions related to: attractiveness and naturalness of the sites, safety concerns, knowledge about brownfields, attitudes towards natural and conventional remediation strategies and demographic information. This information was analyzed to gain insight into the relationship between acceptance, risk level and design elements or cultural cues. Analysis of the survey results (using a mixed model ANOVA approach) led to several interesting conclusions. The primary finding is that increasing the number of cultural cues or design elements increases acceptance. This implies that the more cues or design elements that are woven into the remediation design; the more likely the community will be to accept it. Relative to concrete capping (the most common remediation technique), any and all forms of natural remediation involving at least one cultural cue are significantly more acceptable. With regards to information it seems ignorance is bliss; i.e. without information people were more accepting of all design solutions than those with information (save for concrete which was equally disliked by both groups). In respect to risk level, a steady decline in acceptance of all proposed solutions can be seen as risk level increased. This study demonstrates that there is a strong public desire for more natural remediation of brownfields relative to traditional techniques. This study also confirms that adding even one cultural cue will likely boost acceptance of messy nature. The major implication of this finding is that cities can make simple interventions (place a sign, mow a strip, plant in rows) that are likely to increase community acceptance of natural remediation projects. Additionally, adding more cues will help people better relate to the site as it will conform more to their idea of what nature should look like in an urban setting.