In This Article
Subscribe to Environment Updates
Civic Forestry to Ease Energy Burden
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Urban areas big and small are initiating tree-planting programs to reduce energy costs and carbon emissions, but a few glitches remain.
30-Second Summary
According to The Washington Post, mayors of major cities around the United States have vowed to plant “millions of trees in the coming years,” to reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. But success will be difficult; since 1972, three-dozen American cities have lost a quarter of their tree cover, and the United States is reportedly missing 600 million of its trees.
On Earth Day, the Energy Conservation through Trees Act was introduced by Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif. The Act will use tree planting to reduce carbon emissions caused by the heating and cooling of homes, according to the American Forests organization.
Big cities like Los Angeles and New York have received attention for their million-tree plans, but smaller urban areas, such as Horn Lake, Mississippi and Manitowoc, Wisconsin, are also doing their part to plant trees and educate residents on the benefits of green living.
Tree planting is not favored by all urbanites, however. In New York, forester Arthur Simpson has been frustrated by some residents’ aversion to having trees planted in their immediate vicinity. The mindset is “you can’t tell us we have to have it,” said Simpson in a New York Times article.
Some cities have been giving away trees and seedlings to encourage residents to participate in urban forestry, but many times, the freebies either die from lack of care or are simply thrown away, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Poor neighborhoods have largely been left out of the green movement, according to an article in the Seattle Times. Plans like urban tree planting will not fully succeed unless all incomes are given a real opportunity to participate, said the article.
On Earth Day, the Energy Conservation through Trees Act was introduced by Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif. The Act will use tree planting to reduce carbon emissions caused by the heating and cooling of homes, according to the American Forests organization.
Big cities like Los Angeles and New York have received attention for their million-tree plans, but smaller urban areas, such as Horn Lake, Mississippi and Manitowoc, Wisconsin, are also doing their part to plant trees and educate residents on the benefits of green living.
Tree planting is not favored by all urbanites, however. In New York, forester Arthur Simpson has been frustrated by some residents’ aversion to having trees planted in their immediate vicinity. The mindset is “you can’t tell us we have to have it,” said Simpson in a New York Times article.
Some cities have been giving away trees and seedlings to encourage residents to participate in urban forestry, but many times, the freebies either die from lack of care or are simply thrown away, reports the Los Angeles Times.
Poor neighborhoods have largely been left out of the green movement, according to an article in the Seattle Times. Plans like urban tree planting will not fully succeed unless all incomes are given a real opportunity to participate, said the article.
Headline Links: Urban tree planting taking off
According to an article in the Washington Post, mayors of major cities around the United States have vowed to plant “millions of trees in the coming years.” Known as green infrastructure or urban forestry, tree planting is being used to save energy, reduce carbon emissions and treat wastewater in heavily populated cities like Boston, Los Angeles, Seattle and Denver.
Source: Washington Post
The tree trend has spread to smaller cities, as well. Horn Lake, Mississippi, has established a greenway, hired an urban forester and organized a monthly lecture series on trees at the city library. “It’s a commitment by the city to do the things that make us environmentally friendly,” said Horn Lake Mayor Nat Baker.
Source: The Commercial Appeal
In Manitowoc, Wisconsin, Master Gardener volunteers recently held tree-planting seminars, followed by group plantings at the city’s Silver Lake Park. The project took off thanks to an Urban Forestry grant from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Residents learned how to replant a potted tree, and discussed the pros and cons of types of container trees.
Source: Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
Not everyone is jumping on board, however. An April 2008 article in the New York Times discussed the struggles of urban foresters in New York City who are helping to carry out Mayor Bloomberg’s million-tree initiative. Residents and homeowners have complained that trees worsen their allergies, could fall on their cars, and require noisy construction on city sidewalks.
Source: New York Times
Background Links: New act encourages urban forestry
On Earth Day, the Energy Conservation through Trees Act was introduced by Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Calif. The Act will use trees to reduce carbon emissions caused by homeowners’ heating and cooling energy use. Research shows that strategic tree planting can reduce home air-conditioning bills by about 30 percent in urban areas, according to the Department of Energy.
Source: American Forests
Related Links: Problems associated with city trees
To reach their lofty tree-planting goals, some cities have initiated tree giveaways to encourage residents to participate in urban forestry, but the practice is controversial, according to the Los Angeles Times. “Organizers are not so much planting trees as giving them away … in the summer or in a year of intense drought,” which results in many dead or discarded trees, said the article.
Source: Los Angeles Times
An article in the Seattle Times discussed whether the green movement could succeed without including poorer neighborhoods. “If the only people who can participate are the kind who can afford to put solar panels on their second home, the green movement is going to be too small to fix the problem,” said the article. A “green-collar” workforce has been called a possible solution.
Source: Seattle Times
Most Recent Beyond The Headlines
© 2012 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
