This paper presents the experimental results of using a greenbelt to mitigate accidental releases of chlorine from a small storage installation. During the field tests carried out with the shrub Thuya orientalis, Linnaeus (oriental thuya), the ability of such a barrier of vegetation to mitigate accidental releases by reducing the chlorine downstream concentrations was investigated. Visible injuries to the shrubs exposed to chlorine have been noticed, since the damaged areas exhibited typical symptoms with needles necrosis and a burnt orange-brown color. Early defoliation was observed in the vegetation areas directly exposed to the gas plume. It was shown that in the presence of the greenbelt, the chlorine concentrations were lessened by a factor of 4 at a distance of 5 m downstream from the source. This dilution ability vanished swiftly with the distance downstream from the greenbelt. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.