Can You Quantify the Benefits of Trees?

Multiple studies prove that trees exert a positive effect on many aspects of people’s lives, including their health, homes, businesses, communities, drinking water and air quality.

Here are just a few of those benefits categorized by contributions in the Economic, Environmental, and Social spheres and in Energy Conservation. For the full list and detailed resources, click here.

Economic Contributions
• Research shows that shoppers in well-landscaped business districts are willing to pay more for parking and up to 12% more for goods and services.

• Trees reduce runoff and erosion from storms by about 7% and reduce the need for erosion control structures.

• Desk workers with and without views of nature were surveyed. Those without views of nature, when asked about 11 different ailments, claimed 23% more incidence of illness in the prior 6 months.

• Amenity and comfort ratings were about 80% higher for a tree-lined sidewalk compared with those for a non-shaded street.

Energy Conservation
• The net cooling effect of a young, healthy tree is equivalent to 10 room-size air conditioners operating 20 hours a day.

• Trees properly placed around buildings as windbreaks can save up to 25% on winter heating costs.

• As few as 3 trees properly positioned can save an average Illinois household about 6.5% of annual heating and cooling costs, or between $100 and $250.

• Rows of trees reduce windspeed by up to about 85%. Dense rows are most effective. Because even a single row of dense conifers significantly reduce windspeed, windbreaks can be effective on relatively small house lots.

Environmental Contributions
• Leafy tree canopies catch precipitation before it reaches the ground, allowing some of it to gently drip and the rest to evaporate. This lessens the force of storms and reduces runoff and erosion. Research indicates that 100 mature tree crowns intercept about 100,000 gallons of rainfall per year, reducing runoff and providing cleaner water.

• Trees reduce noise pollution by absorbing sounds. A belt of trees 98 feet wide and 49 feet tall can reduce highway noise by 6 to 10 decibels.

• A typical community forest of 10,000 trees will retain approximately 10 million gallons of rainwater per year.

Social Contributions
• Trees in urban parks and recreation areas are estimated to improve outdoor leisure and recreation experiences in the United States by $2 billion per year.

• Trees reduce crime. Apartment buildings with high levels of greenery had 52% fewer crimes than those without any trees. Buildings with medium amounts of greenery had 42% fewer crimes.

• Hospital patients recovering from surgery who had a view of a grove of trees through their windows required fewer pain relievers, experienced fewer complications, and left the hospital sooner than similar patients who had a view of a brick wall.

• Americans travel about 2.3 billion miles per day on urban freeways and highways. Studies show drivers exposed to roadside nature scenes had a greater ability to cope with driving stresses.

For a full list of benefits and the supporting resources, click here.

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