Trees are the longest living organisms on the planet and one of the earth’s greatest natural resources. They keep our air supply clean, reduce noise pollution, improve water quality, help prevent erosion, provide food and building materials, create shade, and help make our landscapes look beautiful.
It is estimated that trees provide villagers with hundreds of thousands in services each year, including to help manage stormwater runoff, removing tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, increasing property values, providing habitat for wildlife, preventing erosion and contributing to residents’ health.
Urban forests play an important role in ecology of human habitats in many ways: they filter air, water, sunlight, provide shelter to animals and recreational areas for residents.
They moderate local climate, slowing wind and stormwater, and shade our homes to help conserve energy. They are critical in cooling the urban heat island effect, thus potentially reducing the number of unhealthful ozone days that plague cities in peak summer months.
Our urban forest not only cleans the air and intercepts gallons upon gallons of rainwater every year, it adds beauty and serenity to our neighborhoods, thus increasing property values with al of these benefits.
Making sure the right tree gets planted in the right location is very important. Additionally, removing dead and dying trees is another important aspect of managing our urban forest. Consulting an arborist is the best way to make the decision about which trees need to be removed, which need to be pruned and which just need time to recover from a problem.