Abstract

Urban green spaces are considered as a key solution to problems associated with increasing urbanization, such as pollution and urban heat island effects. The green spaces of cities include both public and private green spaces, which although different, can both provide positive benefits for residents. Gardens on private residential lots represent a substantial proportion of green spaces in low-density cities with extensive suburban areas. This paper investigates the environmental, social and economic functions of residential gardens in a primary residential zone of Galle City,Sri Lanka. 280 housing units were surveyed to collect the data for multiple regression analysis and develop models to illustrate the functions of residential gardens.The model value was substituted and the Ŷ value taken for every housing unit.These data were entered into the Geographic Information System (GIS) platform, taking one house as a unit of analysis. Findings from our qualitative research showed that only 8 percent of the residential gardens were functioning well in environmental, social and economic terms while 24 percent of the residential gardens were functioning at a moderate level.59 percent of the residential gardens were functioning poorly (at a low level) and the remaining 9 percent of residential gardens were not functioning at all.These results suggest that overall;gardens on private residential plots are not functioning well in Galle City. The implications of such findings for policy planners is that residential Green spaces,which have the potential to provide a wide range of functions,can play a significant role in benefiting the urban environment and its populace.Therefore,it is clear there is an urgent need to promote the use of residential green spaces positively by implementing sustainable action plans.evelop and implement effective wastewater management plan