If anyone has not seen the documentary “Black Fish,” it is highly recommended. The basic gist is that putting orcas in a tank is like putting a toddler in a bathtub for eternity. Despite propaganda, this was terribly bad for these mammals, and it ended in tragedy. Just like zoos, it seems that animals do not prefer to be placed in captivity and stripped of their autonomy.
Now consider the picture above of a section of the Fort Worth Water Gardens. Wisely, most of the exhibit has been shut down, due to severe droughts in Texas. The trees look lovely, but their roots are starting to tear through concrete, typical of mature trees. Yes, they still receive water and care, but what if planting a tree in concrete is similar to putting an orca in a bathtub?
The repeated mantras to continue building ignore a very real danger: the urban heat index. Yes, vegetation can be added to parking lots, but stronger arguments to consider might be 1) not building, and/or 2) that while trees may help humans breathe, they need more space than given. More research is demonstrating that trees are social, but planting them in a row is not the same as intertwining root systems.
Most people do not understand that for buildings to remain, nature must be altered. For trees, this means that all the roots need to be contained. Regardless of how many pretty pictures are designed, every tree is literally imprisoned in a much smaller space than necessary to thrive. Consequently, everything with a tree attached will eventually become either uneven or unstable.
Trees need space to grow. The end. No matter how many people wish otherwise, every living creature cannot succumb to the dominant narrative.
Chasing A Dying Empire 