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Wednesday, April 18, 2012 - By Anonymous - No comments
The Money in Trees
Here at SeeClickFix, we love us some trees. We love supporting organizations that encourage community events around trees. We like planting them ourselves.
We even climb the occasional tree. The premise of SeeClickFix is that
individuals can act to improve their own neighborhoods, so our
enthusiasm for trees is largely based on an assumption that their
natural beauty improves communities and supports the local environment.
The findings of some recent studies indicate that the benefits of trees
may be more quantifiable than we realized.
For instance, a study
conducted at the University of Pennsylvania looked into whether an
intentional effort to green a neighborhood could reverse the decline of a
blighted area. The studies' found that planting a tree
within 50 feet of a house can increase its value by about 9%. Moreover,
Susan Watcher, the Professor who led the study note "People are not
only more willing to choose this neighborhood and pay more for living in
this neighborhood, but it also spurs other reinvestment." This
virtuous cycle sounds a bit like the work going on at a local underpass,
which began with some tree plantings and continue through Inside Out NHV.
The good news does not end there. A study
conducted in Tennessee by The Department of Agriculture determined that
the state receives a cumulative benefit of $638 million for just the
trees found in urban areas, which breaks down to about $2.25 per tree
per year. This benefit was largely due to the carbon storage capacity
of the trees, which cut down on the pollution in the air, thereby
enhancing the quality of life and well being for the community.
To
a certain degree, it doesn’t make sense to calculate the contributions
that trees make monetarily. The value a vibrant community brings to its
members can’t entirely be captured in dollars. However, as
municipalities continue to be strained financially because of the
economy, it’s important to remember how resources like trees enrich
neighborhoods.
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