Is green space associated with reduced crime? A national-scale study from the Global South

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Authors

Venter, Zander S.
Shackleton, Charlie
Faull, Andrew
Lancaster, Lizette
Breetzke, Gregory Dennis
Edelstein, Ian

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Elsevier

Abstract

Assumptions about the link between green space and crime mitigation are informed by literature that overwhelmingly originates in the Global North. Little is known about the association between green spaces and crime in the Global South. We utilized 10 years of precinct-level crime statistics (n = 1152) over South Africa, a global crime hotspot, to test the hypothesis that green space is associated with reduced crime rates. We found that, after controlling for a number of socio-demographic confounders (unemployment, income, age, education, land use and population density), for every 1% increase in total green space there is a 1.2% (0.7 to 1.7%; 95% confidence interval) decrease in violent crime, and 1.3% (0.8 to 1.8%) decrease in property crime, with no effect on sexual crimes. However, the direction of the association changed for property crimes when exploring the effect of green space characteristics including tree cover and park accessibility. Property crimes increase by 0.4% (0.1 to 0.7%) with a percentage increase in tree cover, and by 0.9% (0.5 to 1.3%) with every kilometer increase in proximity to a public park. Further research, including experimental studies, is needed to better isolate causal mechanisms behind crime-green space associations, especially considering that green space may map to race and income inequality and that there may be more crime reporting in affluent areas. Nevertheless, our results provide a complementary contribution to the evidence from the Global North, highlighting the need for more nuanced definitions of green space and its characteristics when considering links to crime. When viewed in light of the broader suite of ecosystem services provided by green space, our results support urban greening as a major strategy towards achieving just and sustainable cities and towns.

Description

SUPPLEMENTARY DATA : FIGURE S1. An example of fractional tree cover mapped using machine learning, orthophotos and satellite imagery over Johannesburg. The area depicted covers an increasing tree cover gradient from south-east (Alexandra) to north-west (Sandton). Panel A shows a Google satellite image of the area while B shows fractional tree cover aggregated to a 20x20m grid. C and D show a zoomed extent of an area identified with a red box in A and B. E and F show street-view images, representative of the neighbourhood, at locations marked with a star in A. Image E is in Sandton with annual average crime rates for violent, sexual and property crimes of 504, 81 and 1702 crimes per 100,000 citizens, respectively. Image F is in Alexandra with annual average crime rates for violent, sexual and property crimes of 860, 39 and 353 crimes per 100,000 citizens, respectively.

Keywords

Criminology, Green infrastructure, Tree canopy, Urban parks, Violence, SDG-11: Sustainable cities and communities

Sustainable Development Goals

Citation

Venter, Z.S., Shackleton, C., Faull, A. et al. 2022, 'Is green space associated with reduced crime? A national-scale study from the Global South', Science of The Total Environment, vol. 825, art. 154005, pp. 1-8, doi : 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154005.