The validity of the thought of Miguel Ángel de Quevedo
In these days when trees are felled to make way for mobility systems such as Metrobus; In which it is not considered the importance of free areas in housing projects, and nature is cornered in camels or residual spaces, it is necessary to learn from the history of our city through one of its key characters.
Miguel Ángel de Quevedo was not only an engineer, but one of the great researchers of the nineteenth century, impeller of urbanism, environment and forest engineering. Also known as the "Apostle of the Tree", he is the author of works such as Memoirs of the Valley of Mexico (1889) and free spaces and forest reserves of the City (1911).
His studies already warned of a concern for the future of the city, so he suggested various options to mitigate their environmental problems. Today in this article we will review some of your proposals.
- Free space and trees in the city
Part of that every urban conglomerate creates health problems, especially for the renovation of the air. This is why it remarks the need for free spaces: parks − regardless of scale −, gardens, avenues with trees that guarantee sufficient forest reserves to purify the air. Precisely, one of his first actions was to donate to Mexico City the nursery of trees and plants Floridas of Coyoacan − later known as Viveros de Coyoacan − so that there reproduce some of the species he had brought to Mexico and his Used in the reforestation of urban spaces.
- Boundary forest Protection Zone.
Planting trees in areas surrounding the city for oxygen endowment through a real program of reforestation.
- Urban design to support ventilation
His thought was a pioneer in this discipline; By observing the growth of the colonies, he imagined the city's problems and the accelerated trend of urban growth. He therefore stressed the need to ensure that the wind circulates through the city through the design of streets and buildings. It proposed that the constructions did not exceed 22 m of height, that the width of the streets out of 18 meters and that the trace combined the rectangular system and the radial one in order to have more varied spaces where the wind circulates.
- Promenade Avenues
Formed by a large public thoroughfare with trees, spaces with ample sidewalks and comfortable seating for rest, as was the Paseo de la Reformation at that time or the park way generalized in countries such as France, Germany and North America; These routes could communicate to the suburban parks and make the walk through the city more agile.
- Beautify the city.
A concept very consistent with the time, the search for beauty. However, the engineer M.A. Quevedo said that the same reforestation, the ample and healthy spaces, and the incorporation of the free areas to the city, would result in an urban image for the delight of its inhabitants and visitors.
More than a hundred years have passed since these options were raised, and the engineer's ideas continue to emphasize a current need. Preserving forest reserves and trees as a basic unit to talk about the environment guarantee the safety, health and beauty necessary to conceive a better quality of life in the cities of the present and the future.