From email:

COUNCIL PUBLIC INFORMATION NEWS ADVISORY
IMMEDIATE RELEASE TO BE FORWARDED AND SHARED
Thursday, 23 August 2012

Richmond residents reminded of September 1st application deadline for the FY 2013 Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program: Purchase, plant and protect a Community Street Tree

Entire community invited and encouraged to adopt a tree

WHAT (Richmond, Virginia U.S.A.) — Richmond City Council reminds residents of the upcoming September 1st deadline for applying for the FY 2013 Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program.

Managed by the Richmond Department of Public Works Division of Urban Forestry, the Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program helps increase the beauty, efficiency and value of Richmond neighborhoods by providing a way for Richmond residents to purchase, plant, protect and care for city/community street trees.

Applications and more information about the Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program and adopting a tree are available by calling the Richmond Department of Public Works Division of Urban Forestry, at 804.646.5607 or http://www.richmondgov.com/PublicWorks/UrbanForestry.aspx (webpage), applications can also be downloaded from the EnRichmond Foundation website, at http://www.enrichmond.org/ Tree adoptions are $50.

Recognized as an outstanding and successful program that is helping to replenish and sustain community street trees in the city of Richmond, the Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program is helping to protect one of Richmond’s most precious assets and valuable resources.

Representing a replacement value of more than $211 million, Richmond’s stock of community street trees save and serve Richmond residents in some of the following ways:

· Community street trees can save millions of dollars in road/street repair and maintenance by providing shade that protects the oil-based sealer from drying out as fast. This can defer the need for slurry seal from every 10 years to every 20-25 years for older streets with extensive tree canopy cover.

· Community street trees reduce noise pollution by 50 percent by acting as a buffer and absorbing urban noise, according to a U.S.A. Department of Energy study.

· Community street trees reduce flooding and stormwater runoff by reducing intercepting and storing volumes of rainwater on leaves, branches and surfaces, thereby mitigating the onset of peak flows.

· Community street trees reduce soil erosion and downstream stream/river/water pollution by diminishing the impact of raindrops on barren surfaces.

· Community street trees increase a city’s aesthetic beauty, which has an effect on its economic and tourism desirability and financial health.

· Studies have shown that families who live near trees have significantly better relations with and stronger ties to their neighbors and have the potential to reduce government social service budgets, decrease police calls for domestic violence, and decrease the incidence of child abuse.

Also, generally speaking:

· Trees on properties can increase real estate values by 5-15 percent compared to properties without trees.

· Trees increase air quality and reduce harmful greenhouse gas by mitigating levels of carbon dioxide.

· Trees can save families from 20-25 percent of their annual household energy use when well-positioned trees are used around a conventional house compared to a house in a wide-open/non-treed area, according to the United States Forestry Service.

CONTACT For more applications and more information about the Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program and adopting a tree, please contact the Richmond Department of Public Works, at 804.646.5607 (tel), or http://www.richmondgov.com/PublicWorks/UrbanForestry.aspx (webpage), applications can also be downloaded from the EnRichmond Foundation website, at http://www.enrichmond.org/

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