The DPW has taken the first steps towards developing an inventory of Arlington’s street trees using GIS mapping technology. More information will be posted as it becomes available.
Resources
State of the Urban Forest: A Summary of the Extent and Condition of Boston’s Urban Forest, Spring 2008
Executive Summary
The Greater Boston Urban Forest Inventory (GBUFI) initiative developed as a result of the growing awareness of the importance of urban forest management and the recognition that little was known about the extent and condition of Boston’s urban forest. In 2006 the Urban Ecology Institute and Boston’s Urban Forest Coalition completed the first-ever comprehensive inventory of Boston’s urban forest. The inventory included both an analysis of Boston’s overall tree cover using aerial imagery and a detailed survey of Boston’s street trees.
Northeast Community Tree Guide: Benefits, Costs and Strategic Planting
Abstract
McPherson, E. Gregory; Simpson, James R.; Peper, Paula J.; Gardner, Shelley L.; Vargas, Kelaine E.; Xiao, Qingfu. 2007. Northeast community tree guide: benefits, costs, and strategic planting. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-202. Albany, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station. 106 p.
Trees make our cities more attractive and provide many ecosystem services, including air quality improvement, energy conservation, stormwater interception, and atmospheric carbon dioxide reduction. These benefits must be weighed against the costs of maintaining trees, including planting, pruning, irrigation, administration, pest control, liability, cleanup, and removal. We present benefits and costs for representative small, medium, and large deciduous trees and coniferous trees in the Northeast region derived from models based on indepth research carried out in the borough of Queens, New York City. Average annual net benefits (benefits minus costs) increase with mature tree size and differ based on location: $5 (yard) to $9 (public) for a small tree, $36 (yard) to $52 (public) for a medium tree, $85 (yard) to $113 (public) for a large tree, $21 (yard) to $33 (public) for a conifer. Two hypothetical examples of planting projects are described to illustrate how the data in this guide can be adapted to local uses, and guidelines for maximizing benefits and reducing costs are given.
Keywords: Ecosystem services, Northeast, urban forestry, benefit-cost analysis.
