DELMARVA - A growing number of people are moving away from rural communities to urban ones across the country. About 80% of Americans live in urban communities. With this trend comes an increase in climate-related risks. The presence of trees can help mitigate these risks.
As extreme weather events such as excessive heat and rainfall become more common in our warming world, urban environments are particularly prone to enhancing these risks due to the heavy presence of concrete and pavement, which trap both heat and water.
Trees help reduce the risks of extreme heat by providing shade to reduce the air temperature.
Tree canopies help to slow rainfall as it falls to the ground while also helping absorb water runoff, minimizing the impacts of flooding.
In Salisbury, for example, it is estimated that 75 million gallons of storm runoff have been avoided and that 11 million pounds of air pollution have been absorbed by trees.
Of course, this helps to improve our air quality locally, making our air safe to breathe. This connection to nature has also been shown to have many physical and mental health benefits.