The Green Infrastructure Strategy will make the county a better place for people to live, work and enjoy whilst improving and increasing habitats for wildlife. Green spaces will give people more opportunities for informal sport, leisure and exercise - improving physical and mental health, and will provide natural spaces for local neighbourhoods to use for relaxation.
For wildlife and nature, these spaces will lower the risk of local wildlife vanishing from the county due to loss of habitat, create new areas for wildlife to live in, and will attract new wildlife to the countryside. Green spaces also reduce the risk of flooding by restoring habitats that can store water, improve air and water quality, reduce noise pollution and support local food production, in allotments, gardens and through agriculture.
And finally, there is also an economic benefit to increasing green spaces - house prices have been shown to increase in areas close to green spaces, and these areas can become attractions for tourists and visitors, and businesses prefer to be situated in locations with attractive open spaces.
A green corridor is a footpath, bridleway or other public right of way, river, ditch, disused railway line or even a hedgerow, which forms a green channel for people and wildlife. Green corridors are initially being developed to enhance public access and interpretation, with improvements to habitat features to connect green spaces and allow the movement of wildlife.
Currently the main green corridors in Cambridgeshire are waterways, such as the Ouse Valley and Ouse Washes, Cam Valley and the River Lark, and large-scale archaeological features, such as Devil's Dyke and Fleam Ditch.
New green corridors will provide linkages between biodiversity clusters and give enhanced public access.
Green Infrastructure, as defined in the
Government's Planning Policy Statement 12, is:
"a network of multi-functional green space, both new and existing, both rural and urban, which supports the natural and ecological processes and is integral to the health and quality of life of sustainable communities."
In more straightforward terms, it is the natural environment that provides social, economic and environmental benefits.
Some Green Infrastructure is planned and designed, such as public or country parks, street trees and sport pitches, whereas other types are more natural, e.g. rivers, woodlands, nature reserves and hedgerows.
Green Infrastructure exists in villages, towns and cities, and links these places to the wider countryside, and also to other Green Infrastructure sites.
Green Infrastructure provides a range of functions or services: places for wildlife, for people to relax and exercise, for food or fuel production, or for flood protection. It can perform more than one service and often the services they provide are cheaper and more sustainable than man-made solutions. Green Infrastructure should be linked together in networks to provide the best benefits for people and wildlife - it is not just an amenity that is nice to have, but a necessity that is important to have.