Shade Report
How We Can Keep Our Parks Cool for Generations to Come
Nashville is Heating Up
As Middle Tennessee feels the increasing impact of climate change, summer days at our beautiful public parks have become harder to enjoy.
The good news? There’s something we can do about it.
We all know the difference a beautiful shade tree can make on a hot summer day. So at Nashville tree conservation Corps, we analyzed all 148 public parks in Metro Nashville to find teh ones most in need of additional shade.
The goal? To encourage Metro to prioritize these areas for tree conservation and planting, so our parks can be havens for all Nashvillians now and for generations to come.
Nashville’s 10 Hottest Parks
Shade Report Results
- Watkins Park
- William Edmondson Park
- Owen Bradley Park
- Morgan Park
- Church Street Park
- Public Square Park
- Walk of Fame Park
- Commerce Center Park
- Riverfront Park
- Cumberland Park
*These parks are all near Nashville's downtown core, where pavement and buildings store heat to create an Urban Heat Island effect. As development continues planting and preserving trees is the best way to mitigate this effect.
Our Methodology
Our team looked at four metrics for each of the 148 parks and then combined those metrics to come up with a “Heat Score” for each one. Here are the metrics we used:
Park Canopy Score: The percentage of the park that has shade canopy
Area Canopy Score: The percentage of the surrounding neighborhood that has shade canopy
Heat Ranking: The score assigned to the park by the Nashville Heat Exposure Index
Climate and Economic Justice Score: Results form the Climate and Economic Justice Screening Tool showing which parks are disadvantaged due to underinvestment and overpollution
By aggregating these four metrics, we can see a clear picture of which parks are most urgently in need of attention and advocacy.
Why Shade Matters
According to the EPA, shade can lower surface temperatures by 20-45 degrees. Here in Nashville, that’s the difference between a beautiful day and potentially dangerous one.
But the benefits reach much further than that. By protecting existing trees and planting new ones, we’re also improving:
- Air Quality
- Water Quality
- Greenhouse Gas Emissions
- Stormwater Management
- Overall Quality of Life
How to Help
Look up the parks in your neighborhood or the ones you visit most often — Where do they fall on this list and how can you advocate for more shade?
Contact your Metro Council Member and encourage investment in tree conservation and planting at parks identified as high-heat priority areas in their district.
You can simply say: “I support investing in tree conservation and planting to increase shade at Nashville parks identified as heat-vulnerable.”
Request sites for planting trees by going to hub.nashville.gov.
Submission requests can cover tree maintenance, planting, and concerns.