Public greenery

99% of Ostrava’s main green areas are accessible to the public.

Ostrava is exceptional in several respects:

• Over 90% of Ostrava inhabitants live less than 300 metres from at least one type of green area (a park etc.)
• The city’s industrial heritage sites (brownfields) are being integrated into the urban fabric, creating unique and attractive new spaces that are being revitalized and repurposed.

Ostrava has a total 1 778 464 m2 of green areas and 51 200 m of linear greenery. About 84% of Ostrava inhabitants is satisfied with the urban greenery (2016), satisfaction has increased in 12 pp since 2012.

Green areas create compact and unified entities (in the case of larger green areas, parks). Plans for new greenery always take into consideration the proposed Territorial Ecostability System (TES, part of the City’s Land Use and Zoning Plan); the purpose of the TES is to link and integrate areas of higher ecological stability. Plantings of linear greenery are also planned in order to create links between green areas.

As Ostrava is a historic centre of heavy industry, the development of green areas improves the overall appearance of the city (recultivation of brownfields), creates more recreational opportunities within its boundaries, and reduces the negative impacts of air pollution and noise (‘green screens’ shielding residential areas from transport infrastructure/industrial sites). The importance of green areas is further boosted by the need for climate change adaptation (transpiration, shading, CO2 absorption). Green areas also contribute to increased biodiversity.

Urban greenery is classified on the basis of descriptive data. Its quality is evaluated according to the standard methodology for the evaluation of urban greenery; quality evaluation is taken into consideration when planning new urban greenery. Green areas that are obsolete or in poor condition are replaced by new greenery (reconstruction projects).

Forested areas within Ostrava are evaluated as part of the City’s forestry management plans, in accordance with standard evaluation methodology. Parks, forest parks and forests in Ostrava are open to the public all year round. Public transport provides access to the edges of parks/forest parks. Parks have surfaced and unsurfaced footpaths providing easy access (also to families with small children or disabled citizens).