Ekonomiese waarde van groen ruimtes: Suid-Afrika in kontras met Europa

English: The increase of worldwide urbanization results (among others) that green spaces are being neglected, sometimes sacrificed. Urban areas are valued higher than green spaces; mainly because urban areas can be measured in terms of monetary value (such as property prices) and green-spaces mainly have indirect, immeasurable value (social, recreational, biodiversity). The international approach to link economic value to green spaces was tested in Potchefstroom (South Africa), with the anticipation that it would prove that economic value of residential properties increases as distance to the nearby green spaces decreases, as in the cases internationally. Results however illustrated the opposite tendency in Potchefstroom. The uniqueness of the South African environment was evident. It was found that a creative approach is needed in order to quantify the value of green spaces. An instrument was proposed to identify and evaluate green spaces with the aim to quantify the intrinsic value of green spaces and compare development costs and benefits with environmental costs and benefits. It was concluded that this approach could stimulate green planning and prioritize it within the spatial decision-making process.