Could the Prescott Greening Project lead to too much pollen?

"In recent years, research has found that high rates of vehicle exhaust in the area have led to "elevated rates of asthma, heart disease, and pollution-sensitive illnesses," and that West Oakland residents have twice as many asthma-related hospital visits as the county average."

"Bottlebrushes, they said, had a score of 9 out of 10 on the Ogren Plant Allergy Scale, or OPALS, a system created by arborist Tom Ogren 26 years ago and outlined in his best-selling book "Allergy-Free Gardening" as a way to measure pollen's effect on people."

"One reader expressed frustration at the failure to emphasize native plants. Others noted that certain plants on the list, especially bottlebrushes, produced large amounts of "highly allergenic" pollen."

West Oakland residents face elevated rates of asthma, heart disease, and pollution-sensitive illnesses due to high vehicle exhaust, with twice the county average asthma-related hospital visits. The Prescott Greening Project, managed by Hyphae Design, installed a barrier of trees and shrubs along Frontage Road to block particulate pollution. Community organizers like Margaret Gordon spent years developing this solution for an underinvested area. While readers celebrated the tree planting initiative, arborists raised concerns about plant selection, particularly the use of bottlebrushes, which score 9 out of 10 on the Ogren Plant Allergy Scale for pollen allergenicity. Critics worry the project may replace one form of pollution with another.

Read at The Oaklandside