Last updated: March 2025
Lima Verde is one of the pillars of the metropolitan mayor's government plan and is supported by SERPAR. It aims to reforest hillsides, hills, and central berms of metropolitan and local roads, as well as public recreational spaces, to create urban lungs that generate oxygen and scenic beauty for the benefit of the health of all residents (Ref 1, 3). Its goal is to plant one million trees in four years (2022 - 2026) in different parts of North, East and South Lima (Ref 3, 5, 6). This project is being carried out to respond to the increasing problem of urban heat islands that are being generated, especially in the most vulnerable districts where there is no shade due to a shortage of trees (Ref 1, 4). It is therefore focused on areas where the environmental quality is low, where the pollution is high and where there is more danger of higher temperatures (Ref 1, 7). This programme aims to include youth volunteers, district municipalities, educational institutions, grassroots social organisations, neighbourhood leaders, residents and other entities that favour environmental conservation (Ref 1, 2, 3, 5).
Group of volunteers planting trees
Municipalidad de Lima Facebook profile
Overview
Nature-based solution
- Grey infrastructure featuring greens
- Alley or street trees and other street vegetation
- Blue infrastructure
- Riverbank/Lakeside greens
- Parks and urban forests
- Large urban parks or forests
- Pocket parks/neighbourhood green spaces
- Other
Key challenges
- Climate action for adaptation, resilience and mitigation (SDG 13)
- Climate change adaptation
- Climate change mitigation
- Environmental quality
- Air quality improvement
- Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
- Green space creation and/or management
- Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
- Social cohesion
- Environmental education
- Environmental and climate justice
Principal problems in Functional Urban Area (FUA)
- Climate-Related Hazards
- Heat stress & Extreme temperatures
- Environmental Degradation
- Air pollution
- Land use and Socio-economic change
- Unequal availability and access to public green spaces
- Health, Well-being and Social cohesion
- Physical health harm (from pollution, wildfire, extreme temperature)
- Inadequate access to recreational opportunities
Key priorities
Climate action (adaptation and/or mitigation), Social Justice and community
Focus
Creation of new green areas, Creation of large parks and urban and peri-urban forests, Creation of any other green urban spaces, Maintenance and management of urban nature, n.a., Strategy, plan or policy development, Creation of city-wide or neighborhood green and blue infrastrcuture protection or enhancement strategies/plans
Project objectives
- To increase the number of trees in Lima to improve the quality of life of the citizens and recover public green spaces (Ref 1, 3).
- To reduce urban environmental pollution (Ref 1, 6), particularly air quality by capturing CO2 with vegetation (Ref 2)
- Counteract the effects of the heat islands that are being generated in the city, and increase shaded spaces, especially in areas where the number of green spaces is reduced (Ref 1, 2, 3, 5, 6)
- To promote reforestation in spaces with scarce green areas (Ref 2, 3, 5, 6)
- To increase recreational areas for citizens and social integration (Ref 1)
- To promote spaces for citizenship education and healthy recreation (Ref 1)
Implementation activities
The ongoing program, involving SERPAR, district municipalities, and social organizations, develops the following activities:
SERPAR delivers selected trees to municipalities and social organizations (1), after previously identifying the most suitable species for each urban area, such as coastal molle, highland molle, tecoma, meijo, tara, parkinsonia, and huaranguillo (1, 5). Additionally, SERPAR offers workshops, training, and logistical support for the maintenance and conservation of these species (5, 7), as well as during tree planting activities (1). Urban forest characteristics and information are also provided to help formulate joint activity plans, goals, and objectives (1).
The collaboration between SERPAR, municipalities, and social organizations includes organizing events for planting, caring, irrigating, agronomic management, and maintaining the newly created green areas, ensuring their proper conservation (1). Additionally, campaigns are conducted to raise community awareness about the importance of urban forestry and its positive environmental impact (1). Social organizations are required to report the outcomes of these activities to the Green Areas Management of SERPAR LIMA every six months (1)
Climate-focused activities
Climate change adaptation:
- Increase urban vegetation cover to reduce urban heat island effect
- Reducing socio-economic vulnerability to climate impacts (e.g. awareness raising)
Climate change mitigation:
- Increase the availability of green urban space for carbon storage (street tree cover)
- Improve carbon sequestration through selection of more adaptable species
Communities vulnerable to environmental hazards or climate change impacts
Yes
Specification of climate or environmentally vulnerable communities
Low-income neighborhoods, Urban heat islands
Main beneficiaries
- Citizens or community groups
- Young people and children
- Marginalized groups: Children, young people or youth groups , Socio-economically disadvantaged populations (e.g. low-income households, unemployed)
Governance
Management set-up
- Government-led
Type of initiating organisation
- Local government/municipality
Participatory approaches/ community involvement
- Dissemination of information and education
- Joint implementation (e.g. tree planting)
Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project
Servicio de Parques (SERPAR): leading the project (Ref 1)
Agreements with 30 district authorities and 5 non-district organisations (Ref 1):
1. Regional Government - Gobierno Regional Metropolitano de Lima (Ref 1)
2. Municipal company for the supply and marketing of agricultural and livestock products - Empresa Municipal de Mercados S.A. (Ref 1)
3. Asociación Circuito Ecoturístico Lomas de Paraíso Villa María del Triunfo (Ref 1)
4. Regional Department of Education of Metropolitan Lima (DRELM) (Ref 1)
5. National Forestry and Wildlife Service (SERFOR) (Ref 1)
NGOs such as Olla Común Alimentando Sonrisas (Ref 2)
Social Organisations such as Sociedad de Vivienda Civil Militar My. E.P. Marko Jara (Ref 5) and Asociación Nueva Juventud (Ref 11)
Private Sector such as BanBif (Ref 9)
Project implemented in response to ...
... an EU policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a national policy or strategy?
Unknown
... a local policy or strategy?
Unknown
Type of enablers
City network or regional partnerships focused on climate change, sustainability, GI or NBS in the city
Financing
Total cost
Unknown
Source(s) of funding
- Unknown
Type of funding
- Unknown
Non-financial contribution
Unknown
Impacts and Monitoring
Environmental impacts
- Climate change
- Lowered local temperature
- Expected lowered local temperature
- Enhanced carbon sequestration
- Expected enhanced carbon sequestration
- Environmental quality
- Improved air quality
- Expected improved air quality
- Green space and habitat
- Increased green space area
- Expected increased green space area
- Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
- Expected increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
Economic impacts
- Generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation)
- Expected generation of other type of work opportunities (e.g. voluntary, work for rehabilitation)
Socio-cultural impacts
- Social justice and cohesion
- Improved access to urban green space
- Expected improved access to urban green space
- Increased opportunities for social interaction
- Expected increased opportunities for social interaction
- Health and wellbeing
- Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Expected gain in activities for recreation and exercise
- Education
- Increased knowledge of locals about local nature
- Expected increased knowledge of locals about local nature
Type of reported impacts
Presence of formal monitoring system
Yes
Presence of indicators used in reporting
No evidence in public records
Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports
No evidence in public records
Availability of a web-based monitoring tool
No evidence in public records
Potential risks of implementation and trade-offs
Unknown
References
1.
SERPAR Servicio de Parques de Lima (2024). Programa de Arborización. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
2.
SERPAR Servicio de Parques de Lima (2024). Serpar entregó más de 3,500 árboles a Ollas Comunes de Lima Norte en el mes de julio. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
3.
Peruvian Government (2023). Alcalde López Aliaga lanzó programa de arborización "Lima Verde". Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
4.
Romero, R. (2023). Islas de calor en Lima: el sol no golpea igual en Villa María del Triunfo que en San Borja. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
5.
Peruvian Government (2024). Día Mundial del Medio Ambiente: Serpar plantó más de 2,000 árboles del programa “Lima Verde”. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
6.
Peruvian Government (2023). Reforestación de espacios de Lima Metropolitana. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
7.
Camones, I. (2024). Serpar entregará primer lote de “Bono Árbol” a la Municipalidad de Pucusana. Accessed on August 6, 2024, [Source link];
8.
Andina Agencia Peruana de Noticias (2023). Municipalidad de Lima impulsa programa que apunta a sembrar un millón de árboles. Accessed on August 7, 2024, [Source link];
9.
BanBif (2023). BanBif se suma a programa de arborización Lima Verde. Accessed on August 7, 2024, [Source link];
10.
Peruvian Government (2024). “Bono Árbol” de Serpar beneficiará a 100 mil habitantes de Ancón. Accessed on August 7, 2024, [Source link];
Group of volunteers planting trees
Communication Office of Peruvian Government
Group of a diversity of actors in a tree planting day within the Lima Verde Program
Communication Office of Peruvian Government
Information about this nature-based solution was collected as part of the Naturescapes project funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement No 101084341.