Healthy Environment Initiative

The Healthy Environment Initiative exemplifies Seattle Parks and Recreation's commitment to reducing our impact on the environment, eliminating disparities in underserved communities by focusing on environmental justice, and creating sustainable public spaces that are welcoming and accessible to all.

In partnership with the community, our employees build on decades of responsible stewardship by integrating an environmental ethic into our everyday activities and by placing equity at the center of our decisions. By using meaningful metrics and transparent documentation, we will hold ourselves accountable to the community as we work to increase environmental equity throughout Seattle. Read the 2020 Healthy Environment Impacts Report

graphic with key 2020 healthy environment benchmarks for Seattle Parks Dept.graphic with key 2019 environmental health benchmarks for the Parks department illustrated with icons.

All our actions strive to create a more sustainable parks and recreation system through the following goals:

Expand Equity

We work with communities of color, immigrants, refugees, low-income residents, and people with limited-English speaking skills to ensure that the people most affected by environmental injustices have a strong voice in defining the solutions, and benefiting from them.

Increase Engagement

We provide opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to learn about, interact with, and be mindful of the connection between human-built spaces and the natural world. These experiences will inspire individuals to support a healthy environment through their own actions and become today's conservation leaders.

Reduce Energy Use

We persistently work toward net-zero building operations to align with the City's goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050, by reducing energy consumption, phasing out fossil fuels, and investing in sustainable technologies.

Conserve Water

We treat water like the precious resource it is by finding creative ways to manage consumption while ensuring excellent care of our parks and facilities, and by preventing storm water pollution in support of native aquatic plants and wildlife

Increase Biodiversity

We prioritize landscape design, development, management, and maintenance practices that support plant and animal biodiversity, resulting in resilient urban ecosystems that can successfully endure human-caused and naturally occurring disruptions.

Improve Air Quality

We ensure cleaner air through our projects, programs, and policies by reducing emissions, sequestering carbon, and investing in green technologies that create a healthy environment where people, wildlife, and plants can thrive.

Reduce Solid Waste

We prioritize projects, programs, policies, and procurement that result in reducing consumption, reusing materials, recycling, and composting to lessen human impact on the environment.