What makes Moscow, Russia’s capital, the greenest city in the world?

According to WorldAtlas, 54% of Moscow is covered by public parks and gardens, making the Russian capital the greenest city in the world.

Green space on Nezhinskaya street in Moscow. Photo: stroi.mos.ru On average, each Moscow resident enjoys 20 square meters of green space, a rate many times higher than in Tokyo, London or Beijing. This comes from two factors: Moscow was originally built among the forests in Russia, followed by the process of creating landscapes and greening the environment in this city since the 18th century. Hill Fort and Boulevard Arc Borovitsky Hill, where the Kremlin is located, is named after the word “bor”, which means “forest” in Russian. In fact, this place was once an oak forest in the 11th century and is now the focus of central streets in Moscow. Another example is St. John’s Church, also once built on a site that was once a typical Russian elm forest and is now Novaya Square, not far from the Kremlin. Moscow historian Pyotr Sytin believes that the church was named after the old forest that guarded the eastern edge of the Kremlin fortress until the 15th century. These places used to be forests with common trees being spruce and pine. The townspeople then cut down the trees for construction purposes. Moscow at that time was in the period of expansion and the forest in the suburbs was cleared to build new housing. But it is these “suburbs” so close to the Kremlin that are now the heart of the city. Until the 17th century, places like Trubnaya Square were still largely covered with forests. In the early 19th century, many trees could still be seen growing close to the wall around the Kremlin. Catherine the Great, the queen who wanted to renovate the old capital, ordered the construction of the “Arch of Boulevard”. These boulevards were built on the basis of the “White City” (Belyi Gorod) which was the third defensive belt around Moscow built with stone walls and fortifications. Russian journalist Vladimir Odoevsky wrote in the 19th century that Moscow is surrounded by boulevards and it is not only the decoration of the city, but also has important meaning. Looking at this green belt, the people of Moscow can proudly say that in summer or winter, healthy people, sick people, adults, children – all can walk around the city, go for a walk. among the trees without fear of being hit by a carriage. After the fire of 1812, another green belt was erected in Moscow, known as the “Sadovoye”, a wide street surrounding the fast-growing downtown, with many flower gardens in the districts. home. The process of “greening” since the beginning of the 20th century The process of strong urbanization starting from the October revolution (1917) has caused the flow of people to flock to Moscow more and more. The ancient city was forced to adjust to the transformation of the industrial state. In the 1930s, the government removed the “Royal Court”. Trees in many squares and streets were cut down, and there were even plans to destroy the “Bundle Boulevard”. Gorky Park in Moscow in 1979. Photo: TASS Thankfully, this idea was shelved. In 1947, leader Stalin personally supervised the reconstruction and greening of the city center. The work was carried out quickly. Trees were planted around Dzerzhinsky Square (now Lubyanka Square), Okhotny Ryad Station, Sverdlov Square (now Teatralnaya Square) and Bolotnaya Square. The “greening” was also carried out on a large area from Manezhnaya square to Belorussky metro station. These are the first steps to help green the central area of ​​​​Moscow. In 1951, the Moscow government selected 272 greening projects in the capital. By 1961, afforestation workers had planted more than 500,000 trees and shrubs in the city, with a variety of trees such as small-leaved linden, green-leaved spruce, pine, barberry shrub, rose… This period saw the birth of a series of the largest public parks in Moscow, from Gorky Park, to Sokolniki Park, Izmailovsky Park, Losiny Ostrov National Park – the largest urban park in Europe. with an area of ​​over 300 square kilometers. Currently, green space in Moscow is strictly controlled. Since 2013, the city government has launched an initiative to plant one million trees, focusing on creating a garden landscape in the backyards of buildings. The felling of trees in Moscow is strictly regulated. If because of construction work, contractors and investors can still cut down trees, but must ensure the principle that cutting down an old tree must plant two new trees.