Availability and accessibility of urban green spaces: the case of the urban zone of Queretaro Metropolitan Area, Mexico

The increase and preservation of the socio-environmental functions of urban green spaces (UGS) through suitable management is part of the actions of the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. UGS offer benefits to the population in function of their quantity, availability and accessibility. Therefore, we developed a methodology to measure and classify UGS within the urban center of the Queretaro Metropolitan Area in central Mexico. We established one UGS category: public green space and polygon digitization was conducted at 1:1000 scale through on-screen digitization using visual image interpretation. Spatial analysis was carried out in terms of (1) extent (urban green space area); (2) density of UGS (m2 of green area/city block; and (3) accessibility to UGS (access for the population at block level as a unit of analysis). Furthermore, cartographic accuracy assessment was conducted in order to validate the generated data. The results show not only the spatial distribution of UGS in the study area but also their spatial relations with the population, in terms of accessibility and density measured against conventional standards. These results may contribute to urban planning regarding UGS, for the improvement of their functions and contributions to the cities' populations.