The principles of urban ecosystem services are as follows:
1. Biodiversity: Creating and preserving enjoyable and diverse ecosystems to support a prosperous urban community.
2. Water management: Urban environments necessitate proper water management, which includes aspects such as drainage, flooding prevention, and water quality improvement.
3. Soil management: Urban soil, including its surface and subterranean components, has to be accessible, stable, and functioning for ecosystem advantages such as plant cultivation and stormwater recycling.
4. Air quality: The air quality in cities should be improved through methods that minimize air pollution and produce oxygen-especially through urban forests.
5. Climate regulation: Urban landscapes can aid climate change mitigation through greenery, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions and UV radiation.
6. Culture and recreation: Urban residents require access to cultural and recreational amenities and spaces to support social interaction and individual well-being.
Landscape architects can apply these principles in their work by designing and planning areas that are inclusive and environmentally sensitive. They may use green infrastructure to control stormwater drainage, planting urban forests to enhance air quality, and analyzing a site's pre-development naturally occurring habitats in order to identify sites of conservation potential. Additionally, they may use native vegetation in their designs to enhance biodiversity and suggest areas that are to be conserved or restored in order to preserve and enhance the animals and plants that live within them.
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