Utrecht wins gold at the National Tile Removal Championship: 437,000 tiles removed

Across the country, between March 21 and October 31, gardens, schoolyards, and streets were transformed into vibrant, climate-resilient places full of plants, flowers, and trees. Alderman Susanne Schilderman (Public Space, Climate Adaptation): “I want to thank everyone who contributed to this fantastic result. More greenery in an increasingly densely built city is very important, not only to absorb extreme weather such as heat and heavy rain but also to strengthen biodiversity. In Utrecht, we encourage tile removal in many ways, for example with free facade gardens and the Tile Taxi for collecting tiles. Together we keep our city livable. I am very proud of everyone who contributed to achieving the Golden Tile this year.”

Six soccer fields of greenery added

Research shows that people in green neighborhoods are healthier, children play outside more, there is more physical activity, and there is also more social contact between neighbors. Tiles also retain heat and hinder water storage in the soil during wetter winters. Utrecht therefore focuses on replacing tiles with greenery in as many places as possible. In the past six months, green residents from all corners of Utrecht took action. Residents, schools, businesses, and the municipality took their shovels out of the shed to make Utrecht greener.

During four editions of the Facade Garden Neighbors Day, new facade gardens appeared in 95 streets, the Tile Taxi collected tiles from 350 Utrechters backyards, and several schools transformed their schoolyards into green oases for playing. Also, during the Big Plant Day, people worked to make their backyards greener. And of course, the municipality itself also removed a lot of tiles to make public spaces greener, more attractive, and more nature-friendly. All these efforts together provided the city with as much as six soccer fields of new greenery.