Urban agriculture can provide green spaces, fresh food, and healthy activities, but urban gardeners and foragers face many obstacles.
“The concept of food production in urban areas has gained visibility in recent years in tandem with discussions of food insecurity, climate resilience, and equitable access to green space, but the challenge of understanding and representing such a diverse range of stakeholders persists.” In a piece for The Architect’s Newspaper, Melody Stein describes the steps New York City gardeners want the city to take to support their efforts.
New York’s newly established Mayor’s Office of Urban Agriculture (MOUA) is tasked with developing a strategic plan for supporting urban agriculture, and local gardeners have some suggestions that include tax rebates for buildings with agriculture projects that would be passed on to farmers and encouraging food production on green roofs, already mandated in some cases by the city’s sustainability initiatives.
The city can also take steps to eliminate current roadblocks to urban agriculture. “Growing or foraging edible foods in NYC Parks & Recreation–managed public space is currently illegal. The Bronx River Foodway is a pilot program that operates in exception to this rule and has allowed public foraging since 2017 to great success.” Cities can also support gardeners by providing assistance with setting up sustainable irrigation systems.
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