I have my own tragic experience which attests to the devastation a city can go through if there are not large amounts of tree canopies. When I was in AmeriCorps NCCC during the spring of 2013, I was sent to help with Hurricane Sandy disaster relief. I saw vast amounts of urban sprawl and a complete lack of meaningful tree canopy, both downtown and along the residential neighborhoods by the coast I helped. Since that experience, I have since become increasingly more interested in the benefits trees provide and have recently been helping out a tree doctor.
This week we have two weekend reads lined up about trees: one on the outdoor kind, and one on the indoor (and seasonal) kind.
Seattle’s Urban Forest
The approximately four million trees that make up Seattle’s tree canopy, and how best to preserve them, have long been a source of contention here. On one hand, they are critical to the city meeting its environmental stewardship goals; but on the other hand, protecting them at all costs might at times interfere with attempts to increase urban density. Further complicating matters, there are equity considerations: traditionally underserved and economically disadvantaged communities in Seattle tend to have fewer trees (and less city investment in planting new ones), and there have been accusations that tree preservation concerns are wielded by so-called NIMBYs to block development in wealthier single-family residential neighborhoods.
