According to statistics, the Netherlands is home to 358 bee species. Unfortunately, over half of them are already endangered and are currently on the Dutch Red List (RL). Netherlands officials recognized the growing problem and came up with a rather ingenious solution.
They transformed the bus stops of the city of Utrecht into bee-friendly havens to support the pollinating populations.
Now the city of Utrecht has 316 bus stops with rooftops covered in bee-friendly greenery.
Recently, the Utrecht city council recognized an opportunity to expand the function of a regular bus stop by giving them a new eco-friendly purpose: Help tackle the growing endangerment of bees. Utrecht is the fourth-largest city in the Netherlands, located in the middle of the country.
The new green rooftops will help encourage pollination by both bumblebees and honeybees.
Not only do the newly revamped bus stops look more appealing, but the planted succulents also lend support to the city’s shrinking biodiversity, namely the bees. And, the green rooftops will also serve the purpose of capturing fine dust and storing rainwater.
“A green roof is good for a healthy and livable city.”
“A green roof is good for a healthy and livable city … that can, therefore, cope better with climate problems. It helps to prevent flooding and ensures that we suffer less from heat,” reads the official website of the city of Utrecht.
The officials also plan to install solar panels atop the bus stops in the next few years as well.
However, this isn’t the only environmentally-conscious initiative put forward by the city of Utrecht.
Back in February, Utrecht announced the future replacement of their current buses with electric ones. The officials hope to employ a totally carbon-neutral transit fleet before 2028.
However, online comments concerning this initiative were mixed.
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