EnviroAtlas
people 4 health 4 nature 4 economy
Community Summary
Fact Sheet
www.epa.gov/enviroatlas
EnviroAtlas includes an online interactive mapping
application that anyone can use. The interactive map
contains over 200 maps available for the U.S., as well as
100+ fine-scale maps for selected U.S. communities about
existing and potential benefits from the local natural
environment. The EnviroAtlas community component is
based on 1-meter resolution land cover data. Information
derived from these data is summarized by census block
groups; more spatially explicit map layers are also provided.
This fact sheet highlights some of the many community data
layers available for the featured area of Cleveland, Ohio.
Background
The Cleveland, Ohio area was selected due to multiple
opportunities to leverage existing research and community
engagement activities including assessing poor urban heat-
island rankings from a green infrastructure perspective. The
EnviroAtlas boundary for the Cleveland area was
determined using the 2010 Census definition of an Urban
Area. The boundary includes many additional towns in the
Cleveland area. The area measures 2,356 square kilometers,
and encompasses 1442 census block groups.
The Cleveland, Ohio area is split between the Eastern Great
Lakes Lowlands and the Erie Drift ecoregions. It has a
Percent Land Cover in Community Area
¦	Water
¦ ¦ Impervious
Soil/Barren
¦	Trees/Forest
Grass/Herbaceous
Woody Wetlands
Emergent Wetlands
severe climate with warm summers and cold, snowy
winters. Historically, the area was vegetated with mixed
coniferous-deciduous forests; however, much of the natural
vegetation has been removed for farming and urbanization.
Cleveland hosts a wide variety of industries and corporate
headquarters, especially in manufacturing, health care, and
technology. The largest employers in the area are The
Cleveland Clinic, University Hospitals of Cleveland, the US
Office of Personnel Management, and Progressive
Insurance. The demographics of the Cleveland community
area indicate that the potential exists for income and other
Cleveland Area Demographics
2010 Census
Total population
1,758,114
Under 13 years old
15.94%
Over 70 years of age
11.11%
Other than white/non-
Hispanic
30.73%
Below twice the U.S.
poverty level
29.42%
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Cleveland, OH and surrounding area
Towns and cities rely on clean air, clean water, green space,
and other natural amenities for economic sustainability and
quality of life, yet their benefits are not always fully
understood or considered in local decisions. EPA and its
partners are producing EnviroAtlas to help communities
better use environmental assets for public good.

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disparities in the distribution of environmental assets.
EnviroAtlas includes demographic maps that can help
screen for potential health and well-being disparities
resulting from disproportionate distribution of "green
infrastructure."
Ecosystem Services Overview
In EnviroAtlas, the benefits humans receive from nature
are grouped into seven categories that demonstrate the
interconnectedness of these ecosystem services:
Clean air
Clean and plentiful water
Natural hazard mitigation
Climate stabilization
Recreation, culture, and aesthetics
Biodiversity conservation
Food, fuel, and materials (data available only for
communities with farm land)
Examples of some of the data included in EnviroAtlas are
detailed below:
Access to Parks
Parks provide access to green space, encourage physical
activity, and improve the livability and aesthetics of urban
areas. Those who live closer to parks may be more likely to
receive multiple benefits associated with this proximity.
•	An estimated 14 percent of the Cleveland area
is located within easy walking distance (500
meters) of a park entrance.
•	An estimated 59 percent of the Cleveland
population lives beyond easy walking distance
(500 meters) of a park entrance.
Stream and Lake Buffers
Natural land cover adjacent to streams and rivers,
sometimes called the riparian area or zone, helps protect
water quality and supply for drinking, recreation, and
aquatic habitat. The EnviroAtlas community component
analyzes stream and lake buffers with widths of 15 and 50
meters.
•	An estimated 12 percent of Cleveland's land area is within
50 meters of a stream or lake.
•	21 percent of Cleveland's 50-meter stream and lake
buffers contain less than 20 percent tree cover (shorelines
indicated by red lines in the figure above).
EnviroAtlas Tools and Features
•	Learn more about and download EnviroAtlas data: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-data
•	Search our data layers and access their fact sheets: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-dvnamic-data-matrix
•	Explore data for the Cleveland community area in our interactive mapping application:
https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-interactive-map
•	Use our Eco-Health Relationship Browser to explore ecosystems, the services they provide, and their benefits to human
health and well-being: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/enviroatlas-eco-health-relationship-browser
•	Contact us with questions about EnviroAtlas: https://www.epa.gov/enviroatlas/fonns/contact-enviroatlas
Clean And Plentiful Water
Cleveland, OH
Estimated tree cover in 50m stream
and lake buffer (percent)
— 0-20
50 Meter Stream and Lake Buffers
iri Cleveland area, OH
— 81-100
Percent tree cover in 50m stream
and lake buffer
0-26
27-40
g 41-54
| 55-69
¦ 70-100
No buffer area
8®?
EnviroAtlas combines maps, graphs, and other analysis tools, fact sheets, and downloadable data into an easy-to-use, web-based
educational and decision-support tool EnviroAtlas helps users understand the connections between the benefits we derive from
ecosystem services and the natural resources that provide them. For more information, please visit www.epa.gov/enviroatlas.
February, 2017

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