Increasing Green Space in Santa Ana and Buena Park: Making Cities More Equitable
Abstract
What are the most effective strategies for increasing green spaces in disadvantaged communities in Orange County, California?
The lack of green space in Santa Ana and Buena Park is causing these cities to face critical environmental and public health challenges. With rising temperatures due to climate change as well as a lack of cooling centers, the cities of Santa Ana and Buena Park are vulnerable to the negative effects of extreme temperatures, especially with their large populations of seniors, children, and low-income residents. This includes heat-related illnesses, air pollution exposure, and an increased risk of chronic diseases. To combat this, our project aims to increase the amount of green spaces in these cities. This will be done by planting 600 California live oak trees across Santa Ana and Buena Park’s parks. These trees would provide shade, combat the urban heat island effect, and increase city residents’ mental and physical well-being. These trees are low maintenance, have long life spans, and are drought resistant, making them ideal for the urban environments of the two cities. This would be more feasible than building new parks since these cities have limited space, due to being densely populated (U.S. Census Bureau, n.d.; World Population Review, 2025). Funding for this project will be secured through California’s Statewide Park Program Grant (Proposition 68) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant Program (CDBG). We hope to secure $17.2 million total to use primarily for labor and vegetation costs.
