Wider roadways, bigger building sites, street signs, light poles and fire hydrants are all necessary additions to the cityscape, but they compete with trees for valuable space. More urban trees are dying, and fewer replacement trees are being planted. Tight city budgets have reduced the planning and maintenance force required to help overcome the problems created by these obstacles. In short, within a 50-year span, our urban forests have gone from being the picture of health to the point where we almost expect these trees to decline and live short lives. It is time to make some changes in the design and construction of our cities.
Trees are a major element in the city structure, with economic, ecological and aesthetic value.
Just planting more trees is not the answer. Trees have long been fit into spaces left over after everything else is written into the design. This approach will not work if we want our trees to be a major element in the city structure. Today, urban forest professionals are recognizing the declining state of our urban forests and are working to change those conditions for tomorrow. But the problems they face are not simple.