California 'street tree' benefits valued at $1 billion

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-06/ufs--ct061416.php

Public Release: 14-Jun-2016
California 'street tree' benefits valued at $1 billion
USDA Forest Service - Pacific Southwest Research Station

Streets lined with gold? Not exactly, but a new report from the U.S. Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station estimates trees lining Californian streets and boulevards provide benefits to municipalities and residents worth $1 billion.

•••••

"Sometimes it's easy to think of trees along city streets as mere aesthetics, or worse, a nuisance with falling leaves and limbs or uprooting sidewalks," said research forester and lead author Greg McPherson. "But what our study shows is that these trees have a real monetary benefit to the municipalities and residents who care for them."

From carbon storage ($10.32 million) and removal of air pollutants ($18.15 million) to interception of rainfall ($41.5 million) and energy savings from both heating and cooling ($101.15 million), California's street trees are paying big dividends. They even bolster property values and home sale prices to the tune of $838.94 million.

"We've calculated for every $1 spent on planting or maintaining a street tree, that tree returns, on average, $5.82 in benefits," McPherson said. "These trees are benefiting their communities 24 hours a day, 365 days a year."

•••••