But we still have plenty of work to do to make Americans take notice of the dwindling natural resource base in their cities. We need to help them understand the cost associated with lost trees. And we need to help them understand what urban forestry can mean for them and their communities. It goes far beyond the aesthetic and the ornamental, although neither of those should be overlooked. There are critical environmental benefits.
Trees act as buffers that keep pollutants out of our water stream.
Trees act as carbon sinks, capturing greenhouse gases and emitting clean oxygen. While asphalt and buildings trap heat, trees are natural coolants, making them especially important as we grapple with the complexities of a global climate change solution. And, of course, the ecological can't be separated from the economic. Cooler air means lower energy bills for families. Cleaner water not only cuts down on the considerable expense of distillation, it means healthier and more abundant fishing stocks, which are a critical source of income for so many people in this part of the country.