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Beneficial Use Impairments, Degradation of Aesthetics, and Human Health: A Review
Summary
This systematic literature review examined the relationship between environmental aesthetics, ecological quality, and human health outcomes in blue and green space development programs. Researchers found that while improving aesthetics is a common management goal, few studies have adequately quantified the link between aesthetically pleasing ecologically sound environments and measurable human health benefits, identifying a critical knowledge gap.
In environmental programs and blue/green space development, improving aesthetics is a common goal. There is broad interest in understanding the relationship between ecologically sound environments that people find aesthetically pleasing and human health. However, to date, few studies have adequately assessed this relationship, and no summaries or reviews of this line of research exist. Therefore, we undertook a systematic literature review to determine the state of science and identify critical needs to advance the field. Keywords identified from both aesthetics and loss of habitat literature were searched in PubMed and Web of Science databases. After full text screening, 19 studies were included in the review. Most of these studies examined some measure of greenspace/bluespace, primarily proximity. Only one study investigated the impacts of making space quality changes on a health metric. The studies identified for this review continue to support links between green space and various metrics of health, with additional evidence for blue space benefits on health. No studies to date adequately address questions surrounding the beneficial use impairment degradation of aesthetics and how improving either environmental quality (remediation) or ecological health (restoration) efforts have impacted the health of those communities.
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