 Can you ever remember getting into a bad mood when you were walking in the woods? Well, increasingly researchers are finding that taking a walk in the woods, or even looking out a window at trees, significantly improves our mood. I bet you already knew that at some level – and now there is hard, scientific evidence to support your gut feeling. Doesn’t that feel good? In the Dec, 2019 issue of The Journal of Positive Psychology researchers reported that even five minutes in nature enhanced participants’ mood and sense of well-being. In the Winter, 2019 issue of Audubon, several well-respected psychologists report that “contact with nature benefits our mood, our psychological well-being, our mental health, and our cognitive functioning.” Another big benefit: Researchers have found that children diagnosed with ADHD have milder symptoms when they regularly play in green play settings. Add to that all the ecological and economic benefits we know that an urban forest can provide, and it is a no-brainer: We need more trees in Asheville, and we need to have this urban forest managed so that we can all derive the ecological, economic and psychological benefits that research tells us is available from urban forests. By implementing the Comprehensive Urban Forest Master Plan, Asheville’s City Council could make all these benefits available to ALL Asheville residents at no additional cost. So get out there and hug a tree. You will feel better! Cathy Walsh, Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society Chair, External Relations and Advocacy, Tree Protection Task Force
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“I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree.” Joyce Kilmer Incredible Climbing Tree Beaver Lake ~ Bird Sanctuary by Anita Adams of NC Trees Photography Trees are lovely, and beyond their aesthetic virtue, the important role trees play in our environment as bulwarks against the ravages of climate change are well known and documented. But let us talk about something less recognized, yet equally important: birds. Birds, you say? It's quite simple: Birds need trees, and trees need birds for seed dispersal and reforestation. Birds perch in trees, nest in trees, roost in trees and eat the insects that live in and on trees. One of my earliest memories is taking naps under the two oak trees in our front yard, waking up to the song of the birds around us. Thus began my love of birds – a love shared by millions of birdwatchers in the U.S., and locally by members of the Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society.
The relationship between birds and trees is yet another measure available to us in assessing the role our urban tree canopy plays in our environment and in our society. We need to recognize this tremendous asset and the need to protect it by providing a guardian and a plan for this treasure that Asheville is so fortunate to have. I encourage you to share your memories of what trees and birds meant to you as a means of demonstrating the need for an urban forester to manage an urban forest master plan for Asheville. Share your thoughts. Cathy Walsh, Elisha Mitchell Audubon Society Chair, External Relations and Advocacy, Tree Protection Task Force
Unfortunately, city trees just don’t grow and take care of themselves, and growing trees in cities is difficult because of a broad range of urban conditions and human influences. A healthy urban forest requires an investment. The return on that investment is measured as “ecosystem services”. So, the formula for a successful and sustainable urban forest might look like this: Investment in urban forests (a strategic, planned and implemented approach towards protecting, enhancing canopy, and increasing longevity) = a long lived, healthy urban forest = maximum ecosystem services.
Those most significant to Asheville include the increase in stormwater runoff, (costing the city $1,600,000); the loss of carbon storage ($6,850,000), and the decrease in air pollution removal ($23,500). What this study didn’t calculate are the subsequent increases in health-related costs and mortality associated with urban heat island effect and increased air pollution, nor did it put a value on the decreases in water quality.
Just factoring storm water, air quality, and carbon storage, the city has lost an average of $850,000 in ecosystem services per year, over the ten-year study period. This is the cost of doing nothing! A 2014 national survey of urban forestry programs in 667 cities, funded by the National Urban and Community Forestry Council, has shown that the national average of community per capita investment in urban forestry is $8.76. Last year the City of Asheville spent only $5.14 per capita, and if you subtract what the city paid for tree removal, brush pickup up, and chipping, the city’s per capita expenditure for tree maintenance is only $1.73. It is no wonder we are losing canopy as such an alarming rate! The city can reverse this trend of doing nothing by investing in an urban forester and developing a strategic urban forest management plan. The cost of this first step is only a fraction of the ecosystem services losses the city is currently suffering, and will go a long way towards building an environmental return on the taxpayers investment. Author: Ed Macie, Urban Forester; Chair, Tree Protection Task Force; Board Member, Asheville GreenWorks The Asheville Urban Forestry Commission (AUFC), Asheville GreenWorks, and the Tree Protection Task Force have stirred up a lot of community interest in recent months about the need for the City to hire a professional urban forester and develop an urban forest master plan. Why is there such interest in urban forestry management in Asheville? Don't we already have a city arborist who takes care of tree-related matters?
The second study was an urban forest canopy assessment. This study was conducted to identify changes in total tree cover over a 10-year period from 2008 to 2018. Canopy cover can be thought of as the “canary in the coal mine” for cities, because science-based models equate changes in canopy to environmental conditions important to our daily lives and for fighting climate change impacts locally. These conditions include air quality, urban heat island, management of stormwater runoff, energy conservation and carbon sequestration. Both studies pointed to the same overall conclusions. Our urban forest is in trouble, urban tree canopy is decreasing, there is the need for better, planned and coordinated management of our urban trees, the need for stronger tree protection policy, and the overall need for the City of Asheville to change its urban forestry mindset. We no longer have the luxury to take our urban forest for granted, but instead have to make it a priority in our everyday decision making. In order for this to happen, the City must do two things immediately: 1) Hire a professional urban forester to enable this priority “eyes on” approach to decision making; and 2) develop a comprehensive urban forest master plan to embark on a coordinated and strategic approach to improving the condition if this critical natural resource. Why an Urban Forester? Unlike an arborist, who focuses on the management of individual trees, an urban forester employs a systems-based approach to urban forest management. The urban forest is an ecosystem, and its management focus is on maximizing the forest’s ability to provide us its life supporting benefits, while minimizing its risks. An urban forester for the City of Asheville would provide cross-departmental coordination, review of development plans for tree protection, field enforcement of tree regulations, maintenance of a tree inventory database and oversight for the implementation of the City’s Comprehensive Urban Forest Master Plan. None of these activities currently exist within the city’s ability today, and without this capacity, the city’s tree canopy will continue to decline. Why an Urban Forest Master Plan?
The Urban Forest Master Plan will enable a strategic and coordinated approach to managing our urban forest. The product of a community-wide urban forest planning effort will allow for these following types of strategies:
Again, none of these activities currently exist within the city’s current capacity. While the City is taking steps to strengthen its tree protection ordinance, this step is not enough to restore our urban forest and provide for its future health. We all have to impress upon our elected officials the importance of protecting our urban forest as the most cost-effective way to offset both the negative impacts of extreme land development pressures and the localized impact of climate change. Ed Macie Urban Forest Consultant Member, Asheville Urban Forestry Commission Member, Asheville GreenWorks Board of Directors Chair, Tree Protection Task Force |
AuthorsBlog authors include GreenWorks staff and members of the Tree Protection Task Force. Archives
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