Urban Agriculture:

Community, Food, and the Environment

Can You Farm in the City? Yes!

It is common around the world to see food being grown in and

around cities. In the United States, peoples perceptions about
farm locations are changing.

Aquaponics allows more food to be grown in less space, uses

less water, produces less pollution and can be done virtually
anywhere. Urban farming can also be soil based either in the
ground or in raised beds and can revitalize vacant lots.

Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) is indoor farming

which can repurpose vacant buildings or be added to active
buildings as rooftop greenhouses. The size of farms in the city
can vary greatly from home gardens to community gardens to
commercial operations.

Why Urban Agriculture?

By 2050, 70% of worlds population could live in cities, and we will
need to grow about 70% more food than we do today. Urban
agriculture provides local healthier food choices, creates jobs and
allows us to grow the food where the people are.

http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/wsfs/docs/Issues_papers/HLEF2050_Global_Agriculture.pdf

Benefits of Urban Agriculture

There are many benefits to Urban
Agriculture including social, economic
and ecological advantages. Urban
Agriculture helps to create sustainability
in cities. It also reconnects individuals to
their food, creates jobs, and mitigates
negative effects of urbanization on the
environment.

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture
Environmental benefits of Urban Agriculture include
reducing the heat island effect, reducing storm runoff and
water pollution, conserving water through rainwater
catchment and energy conservation.

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Heat Island
According to the EPA, The term "heat island"
describes built up areas that are hotter than nearby
rural areasHeat islands can affect communities by
increasing summertime peak energy demand, air
conditioning costs, air pollution and greenhouse gas
emissions, heat-related illness and mortality, and
water quality.
Urban agriculture can help to reduce the heat island
effect. Rooftop gardens and urban farms reduce
heat absorption by pavement, rooftops and other
impermeable surfaces which is a main cause of the
increased temperature in urban areas.
http://www.epa.gov/hiri/

Thermal (top) and vegetation (bottom) locations

around New York City via infrared satellite
imagery. A comparison of the images shows that
where vegetation is dense, temperatures are
cooler.

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Storm Runoff

Through the use of rooftop gardens and farms, rain barrels, rain gardens and
conversion of vacant lots, urban agriculture can help to prevent the problems
caused by excess storm water runoff.
According to a fact sheet by the EPA, The most recent National Water Quality
Inventory reports that runoff from urbanized areas is the leading source of
water quality impairments to surveyed estuaries and the third-largest source
of impairments to surveyed lakes. Runoff also leads to stream bank erosion,
flooding, health concerns and degradation of aquatic habitats.
http://water.epa.gov/polwaste/nps/urban_facts.cfm

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Rooftop Farms
Rooftop farms increase the energy efficiency of both the
building below and the farm above. Rooftop farms and
gardens help to reduce the heat island effect, reduce runoff
water and provide an outlet for collected rainwater which
further reduces runoff and pollution. Rooftop farms can be
large or small, outdoors or in a greenhouse, and soil or
water based.

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Green Roofs
The green roof project at the Monroe
Building converted approximately
5,200 square feet of roof top surface
to a vegetative roof system comprised
of a sedum and chive mixture. This
roof is expected to capture at least
one inch of precipitation in a given
storm or sequence of storms,
preventing it from entering the sewer.
http://savetherain.us/str_project/projectmonroe-building/

Green roofs are used for stormwater management and energy savings, as well as
for aesthetic benefits. Green roofs absorb stormwater and release it back into the
atmosphere through evaporation and plant transpiration, while reducing urban
temperatures by limiting the amount of heat retaining structures. The vegetation on
the roofs also absorb a great deal of the pollutants in the water before it is released
into the atmosphere.
http://savetherain.us/green-programs/green-infrastructure/green-roofs/

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Rainwater Harvesting
A rain barrel is a water tank used to collect and store rain
water, typically from rooftops via rain gutters. The use of a rain
barrel reduces the amount of stormwater from roofs that runs
off of lawns and into sewer systems. Because combined sewers
in Syracuse can overflow during wet weather, the use of rain
barrels can help reduce the amount of pollutants going into
Onondaga Lake and its tributaries. The water collected in a rain
barrel can be used for watering lawns and gardens, washing
cars, agriculture, or for the other multitude of needs for water
in the home. Rain barrels help to conserve water which save
money and natural resources.
http://savetherain.us/green-programs/green-infrastructure/rain-barrels/
http://savetherain.us/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/STR_RainBarrel.jpg

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Rain Gardens

Onondaga Earth Corps posing after completing a rain garden demonstration project
http://savetherain.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/OEC-at-515-Tully-rain-garden.jpg

http://savetherain.us/wpcontent/uploads/2010/10/STR_RainGarden.jpg

A rain garden is a sunken garden designed to absorb rainwater from impervious

areas such as roofs, driveways, walkways, and compacted lawn areas. Rain
gardens reduce runoff by allowing stormwater to soak into the ground, as
opposed to flowing into storm drains and surface waters, which can cause
erosion, water pollution, flooding, and diminished groundwater. http://savetherain.us/greenprograms/green-infrastructure/rain-gardens/

Environmental Benefits of Urban

Agriculture: Converting Vacant Lots
The Vacant Lot Oswego Street Project
was the first vacant lot completed in the
Save the Rain campaign. The vision of the
Vacant Lot program is to convert Cityowned empty lot properties into useable
spaces for public benefit. This vision also
provides the opportunity for stormwater
management and capture at vacant lot
sites.

http://savetherain.us/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Vacant_Lot_701_Oswego.jpg

Vacant lots, besides being a non-point source of water pollution

caused by potentially toxic dumping and remnant materials from
demolished buildings, they often have poor quality soils with little
drainage capacity which leads to excess runoff. (Kniznhik, 2012)
http://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1044&context=mes_capstones

Economic Benefits of Urban

Agriculture

Urban Agriculture has economic benefits for everyone from the home gardener or
urban farmer to the city government. Home and community gardens can reduce the
amount of money spent on food. Supporting local urban farms supports the local
economy, stimulating spending and potentially creating jobs. Urban farms, like
controlled environment agriculture greenhouses, can provide year round
employment. Urban Agriculture lowers the cost of dealing with environmental
impacts of urbanization, like runoff and heat island effects. Converting vacant lots
can also help prevent a decrease in property values and loss of tax revenue. For
example, Philadelphia has 40,000 vacant lots that lead to a loss in property value
estimated at $3.6 billion (Econsult Corporation, 2010). http://penniur.upenn.edu/uploads/media_items/vacantland-executive-summary.original.pdf

Education and Urban Agriculture

Schools use soil-based gardens,
hydroponics and aquaponics in their
schools to illustrate various scientific
principles and create experiential handson learning experiences for the kids. This
teaches the children about where their
food comes from and helps them to make
healthier and more environmentally
friendly choices.

Kids get to work at gardens/farms and raise food, learning

valuable and employable skills while remaining engaged,
active and productive. They can learn about giving back to
and helping improve their community.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Magnet Elementary School and the Helping
Hands Urban Farm Garden teaches children and young adults about Urban
Agriculture. They learn about the local food system and problems caused
by food deserts. The program aims to create the next generation of green
ambassadors, preparing youth to make informed and healthy decisions
about food and sustainability.

Sustainability and Urban Agriculture

Sustainability requires a holistic perspective
Social
Sustainable

Ecologic

Economic
Life

Three Pillars of Sustainability

Sustainability incorporates social, economic and ecological

responsibility. Many cities have sustainability plans that will help develop
Urban Agriculture. Planning for the future needs to include planning for
food production within cities. Local decentralized farms and gardens can
provide fresh food to urban neighborhoods and help with the problems
caused by food deserts.

Part of Syracuses sustainability

plan is to increase Urban
Agriculture in the city by
reforming zoning laws to make it
easier for urban farmers and by
helping people get access to land
for community gardens and
urban farms. There are also
plans to improve local food
systems to help eliminate food
deserts in the city.

http://www.syracuse.ny.us/sustainabilityplan.aspx

What is Controlled Environment

Agriculture (CEA)?

Rendering by: Detroit Collaborative Design Center,

University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture
Developed for: RecoveryPark

CEA is indoor farming which can repurpose vacant buildings

or be added to active buildings as rooftop greenhouses. CEA
uses technology and engineering to increase productivity and
reduce environmental impact while allowing for year round
farming. It is primarily done using soilless cultivation.

Benefits of Controlled Environment

Agriculture (CEA)

CEA provides a stable, consistent growing environment. It

reduces the amount of water and fertilizer needed to grow
high quality, fresh, local produce. More food can be
produced per acre year round. CEA is an ideal way to grow
food in the city because it can be done on otherwise
unusable land such as brownfields or rooftops.

Vertical Farming
Vertical farming is a concept developed by Dr. Dickson
Despommier, of the Department of Environmental Health
Science of Columbia University and the originator of the
modern concept of vertical farming. The idea is that where
there is little horizontal space, or flat land, farmers should go
up and use the vertical space.
http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/aquaculture-and-soillessfarming

Water Based Urban Agriculture

Water based agriculture includes hydroponics, aquaculture, and

aquaponics. Hydroponics is growing plants without soil. Aquaponics
combines hydroponics with aquaculture, or farming of any aquatic
animal. Almost any type of hydroponic growing system can be
converted to aquaponics just by adding an aquaculture system
which replaces the hydroponic fertilizer.

Soil Based Urban Agriculture

Simple structures covered with plastic can help protect the

plants and improve the growing conditions. They can shield the
plants from strong winds and rain, or they can increase the
length of the growing season by allowing you to plant earlier in
the spring or harvest later in the fall.

Many schools, churches, parks, hospitals and other

businesses have unused space that could potentially be
turned into a community garden or urban farm. Some cities
have programs to help residents gain access to available
land for community gardens and Urban Agriculture.

Raised beds are an excellent way to

garden. They can be very good for
growing lots of food and they make it
easier to garden too. Raised beds
allow you to turn a parking lot, vacant
lot or other space without good soil
into a thriving food garden. In cities
this is the best and safest way to
grow food in soil, and you can use
compost as fertilizer to enrich the
soil.

Home gardens may be the most important form of Urban

Agriculture. In some cities, three times more space is utilized
by home food gardens than all the community gardens
combined. Growing your own food lets you supplement your
regular diet with healthy and nutritious fresh vegetables.

What can you do?

There are many ways to get involved with Urban Agriculture,

from starting your own home garden to starting a commercial
urban farm. Volunteering with a local community garden or
starting a new one is a great way to build community and
increase the availability of fresh produce in neighborhoods
that might not have access to healthy and affordable food.

Grow your own vegetables or fruits.

Plant a garden. Even a small garden
can have big benefits. Home
gardens are a great way to increase
the fresh produce in your familys
diet and save money in the process.
Become active with a local
community garden. If you cant find
a community garden in your
neighborhood, start one!

Aquaponics is a great way to farm at home. It can be a

wonderful family or community project. Interest in aquaponics
is increasing rapidly, so access to information and materials is
easier than ever. There are many online communities that share
knowledge and ideas too. Indoor systems at home are a great
way to keep farming through the winter and dont take up much
space either.

The best way to get fresh produce is to grow it. The next best
way is shopping at a local farmers market or through a
Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) subscription. Buying
a share or subscription in a CSA supports a local farm,
providing you with fresh produce every week and can save
money.

Volunteer for community groups working with youth and

adults to produce locally grown food. Become active and
involved in your local schools and government to encourage
healthier food options and develop Urban Agriculture.

Additional Resources
http://www.epa.gov/swerosps/bf/urbanag/pdf/bf_urban_ag.pdf

http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/blogs/onward/item/54425
http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/farms-and-community/urban-agriculture
http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/farms-and-community/urban-agriculture
http://nebeginningfarmers.org/publications/urban-farming/
http://www.fiveboroughfarm.org/

http://ag.arizona.edu/ceac/
http://www.cornellcea.com/