One thought on “Tree Squared”

1. (Richmond, Virginia U.S.A.) — Richmond City Council encourages residents to adopt a tree and reminds residents of the upcoming September 1st deadline for applying for the FY 2015 Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program. Applications are accepted from July 1 to September 1 of each year and trees are planted from November 1 to April 15.

   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.

   For information, adoption requirements, applications and more information about the Richmond Adopt-a-Tree Program click http://www.richmondgov.com/PublicWorks/documents/letterParticipAdoptATree.pdf
   and http://www.richmondgov.com/PublicWorks/forms/applicationAdoptATree.pdf
   and/or by contacting the Richmond Department of Public Works Division of Urban Forestry, at 804.646.0681/646.5607 or http://www.richmondgov.com/PublicWorks/UrbanForestry.aspx (webpage). Tree adoptions are $50 each.

   Recognized as a successful program that is helping to replenish and sustain community street trees in the city, 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 help 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.

   · 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.

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