Protecting Trees: Yours, Mine and Ours

by Edith Makra
Community Trees Advocate
The Morton Arboretum

The historic communities of Beverly, Morgan Park and Ridge are some of the most beautiful neighborhoods in the city. Charming architecture and pride of ownership certainly account for much of the area’s character and ambiance. But credit also should go to their trees, especially the glorious mature oaks.

The century-old oaks lining the parkways and gracing the lawns a of these communities are among the oldest in the city. Once part of a magnificent oak-hickory forest, these heritage trees are now extremely rare in Chicago. These impressive trees, with their imposing trunks, sprawling, glossy-leaved branches and towering crowns have highly prized cultural meaning. They imply strength, dignity, trustworthiness. Oaks say:  We are a community that respects our history and we intend to hand down our legacy to the next generation.

After all, when an urban tree lives for 50, 80 or 100 years (the average life of an urban parkway tree is less than two decades), they have endured much and seen a lot of changes.

So, when an otherwise healthy mature oak tree is cut down for inconsequential reasons—for a better view or for a thicker turf grass lawn, for example—that is a great shame.

Yes, a tree on private property belongs to that private owner. But trees are public assets, too. We should acknowledge trees’ benefits for the community as a whole and preserve and protect them whenever we can. It’s not a matter of yours or mine. It’s a matter of ours.

Local organizations such as Keeping Beverly Green: Protecting Beverly’s Wooded Heritage, are stepping up and speaking out on behalf of trees, working to increase public awareness about the benefits of trees and how to take care of them.

For the past several years, Keeping Beverly Green, led by Beverly residents Karla Winterbottom and Kathleen Tobin, has been meeting with city officials to advocate for a much-needed tree preservation policy in the city of Chicago. As the saying goes, you can’t fight city hall, but they sure are trying. I wholeheartedly support their efforts to preserve and protect urban trees. Here are some of the many economic, environmental and social benefits of trees, and why you should stand up for our trees, too.

Our trees increase home values. Quality landscaping can add 7-15% to a home’s value, according to The Gallup Organization. Large trees can affect home values in an entire neighborhood, as well as for individual homes.

Our trees help commercial districts thrive. According to research by the University of Washington, shoppers return more often to greened business districts, spend more time shopping, pay more for parking and pay up to 12% more for goods.

Our trees reduce energy usage. Air temperature can be as much as 20° F. cooler in the shade of trees than in open areas, according to the Center for Urban Forest Research in Davis, CA. Overall energy savings throughout the year can amount to 7% annually from strategically placed trees.

Our trees cool heat islands on a neighborhood scale. Collectively, concrete, pavement and structures retain excessive summer heat, driving local temperatures up 4° – 7° F. higher than vegetated areas.

Our trees sequester and store carbon. According to the U.S. Forest Service, compared to a small young tree, a large healthy tree sequesters 48 kg of carbon annually (47 times more than a small tree) and stores 2.6 metric tons of carbon (530 times more than a small tree).

Our trees clean the air. A large tree removes about 2 kg of pollution per year (65 times more than a small tree).

Our trees reduce stress, increase concentration and improve the perception of safety in a neighborhood, according to research by the University of Illinois. One study conducted in Chicago showed that levels of aggression and use of physical violence to resolve conflicts were lower when public housing residents had views of trees and nature. Other studies suggest that symptoms of ADHD were relieved after contact with nature; when children played in natural settings, they had higher levels of concentration.

Our trees speed healing. Research by Texas A & M University showed that hospital patients recovered more quickly following surgery when they had a view of a tree outside their window.

These benefits improve the quality of life for all in the community. So, let’s broaden our perspective from seeing individual trees to appreciating the urban forest that shelters the entire neighborhood.

Keeping Beverly Green needs your help to protect and care for OUR trees.

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