While the region’s urban areas are highly developed, they still retain many remnants of the natural environment that preceded human development.  There are a variety of strategies to protect these urban wilds and restore other elements of urban ecology.  

Undeveloped areas in the city retain a special character and ecology that can enhance neighborhood character and quality of life.  These “urban wilds” vary in size and in character: small wooded areas, rock outcroppings, waterways, ponds, meadows.  Anne Whiston Spirn wrote in The Granite Garden: Urban Nature and Human Design of urban wilds, “They place the city in its regional context and differentiate it from other cities, rather than setting it apart from the surrounding landscape.” They are, she added, “frequently more expressive of the special character of a particular city- its geological origins, topographic setting, indigenous vegetation, and history- than are its manicured parks.”

The ownership and protection status of urban wilds varies greatly.  Some are owned by parks departments and advocacy groups, and are permanently protected; others are owned by non-parks agencies or departments or by private owners, and might yet be developed.  More comprehensive inventories of urban wilds are necessary to plan for their preservation and integrate these features into open space plans.  

Many of the waterways in urban areas have been redirected to engineered channels culverts, or other underground pipes.  Recent efforts in other cities have demonstrated the positive benefits of uncovering and/or restoring buried waterways in urban environments, a process known as “daylighting.”  Daylighting efforts and the use of “green” stormwater management techniques can improve water quality, reduce flooding, and create more awareness of the natural environment.  Municipalities and developers should seek opportunities to leverage new development to restore the “green infrastructure” in urban areas.  Through its “Blue Cities” initiative, the Charles River Watershed Association has developed “Green Street Guidelines” that incorporate low-impact stormwater management practices as well as pedestrian and bicycle accommodations.  Municipalities should develop and adopt comparable guidelines. 

21.a    Municipalities and advocacy organizations should establish partnerships to inventory and document urban wilds

21.b    Urban municipalities should establish site specific “green street standards” similar to those developed by the Charles River Watershed Association

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