Cork City Council have just planted five new ‘Robot Trees’ along Patrick’s Street and Grande Parade in a bid to maintain cleaner city air.
The high-tech CityTrees, also known as moss walls, cost €350,000 per year and work by absorbing nitrogen oxide and particle matter in order to pump out fresh, clean air into the environment.
Each CityTree comes with an interactive screen explaining how they work, and have QR codes for passersby to scan to find out more info.
The 1st of our CityTrees were installed today on St Patricks St.
CityTrees help combat fine dust particle pollution &other pollution associated with traffic congestion.
Air pollution causes up to 1,300 deaths each yr, says @EPAIreland
👩💻Check out https://t.co/b4H0SfyTJP pic.twitter.com/F5E0kBJabq
— Cork City Council #StaySafe (@corkcitycouncil) August 9, 2021
According to EPA Ireland, Air Pollution causes 1,300 deaths per year, and these ‘robot trees’ aim to tackle that issue. The moss walls inside the structure work by trapping and ‘eating’ fine dust particles, making them sustainable dust filters.
Since the announcement, the trees have sparked debate amongst locals, many suggesting we should plant more trees instead, however the council maintains its tree planting programme of planting 1,300 trees in Cork this year alone.
What do you think about these new additions?