CityTree Represents a Moss-Filled Revolution in Reducing Air Pollution

The urban landscapes of European cities have been taking on a new look over recent years. Tall, columnar wooden structures have sprouted in public squares, not as vents for building HVAC systems or subways, but as lush green lifelines reducing air pollution.

Welcome to the realm of CityTree, a revolutionary unit developed by Germany’s Green City Solutions, created with the sole aim of reducing air pollution and cooling the air in densely populated urban environments.

In the words of Simon Dierks, Marketing Lead of Green City Solutions, “The CityTree is a mix of street furniture and a bio-filter—it is a bench at the bottom and a wooden ‘tower’ filled with our moss-filter technology.” Coupling this with intelligent sensors, ventilation, irrigation, and software, the CityTree leverages the natural “superpowers” of moss and delivers them right into the heart of the city.

Green City Solutions has painstakingly developed a specific type of moss, known for its extraordinary ability to filter fine dust and cool the surrounding air. According to Dierks, these moss filters “can remove up to 82 percent of fine dust from the air and cool the air up to 4 degrees Celsius (39 degrees Fahrenheit), measurably improving the air in the immediate vicinity.”

Thirty CityTree units have made their home in cities like London, Berlin, and Munich, showing a positive impact on urban air quality. The success of these moss filters has also paved the way for additional products like the recently launched CityBreeze units.

“While the CityTree serves as a piece of street furniture with its attached bench,” explains Dierks, “the CityBreeze combines the moss filter on one side with a large LCD screen on the other.” This LCD screen is multipurpose, providing live updates on air quality data and serving as a platform for outdoor advertising, presenting an added financial incentive for cities and public buildings to adopt these units.

With their innovative moss-based air filtering and cooling systems, Green City Solutions has a clear objective in reducing air pollution. They want to demonstrate that these “low-maintenance, long-lasting systems can rival conventional, engineered filters in terms of performance,” as Dierks puts it. Unlike conventional air filters that generate waste, their moss filters are never ‘full’, aligning with the company’s ethos of working within a circular approach.

The Mighty Role of Moss in Air Pollution Reduction

While the technology and design of CityTree units are certainly innovative, at the heart of these air purification units lies a humble and often overlooked hero in reducing air pollution – moss. Moss, a simple, non-vascular plant, has emerged as a surprising warrior in the fight against air pollution.

Mosses have a unique capability to absorb and store pollutants present in the air. They thrive in damp or shady locations, forming dense green clumps or mats. What makes them a perfect candidate for urban air filtration is their structure. They lack a cuticle, a waxy layer that most plants have, which allows them to absorb water and nutrients from their surrounding environment, including the air. This attribute also enables them to intake pollutants such as particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides, effectively acting as natural air purifiers.

Additionally, mosses can cool the surrounding air. Through the process of evapotranspiration, mosses release water vapor into the surrounding air, which can significantly lower ambient temperatures. This ability to cool the air makes them not only effective air filters but also a natural solution to urban heat islands, another growing environmental concern in cities worldwide.

The innovative use of moss in CityTree units is a testament to nature’s incredible ability to offer solutions to some of our most pressing environmental challenges. By harnessing the power of moss, CityTree units represent a sustainable, low-maintenance, and effective solution to improving air quality in urban spaces. In essence, moss isn’t just a component of CityTree—it’s an environmental ally aiding in the fight against air pollution.

In essence, CityTree represents a breath of fresh air in the literal and figurative sense. It’s not just a solution for reducing air pollution; it’s a symbol of how urban life and natural elements can intertwine seamlessly for the benefit of the environment and the people who live in it. As Green City Solutions continues to pioneer and innovate, we can expect more green revolutions like the CityTree, transforming our urban jungles one moss filter at a time.