It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia...

24
your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban & Community Forestry

Transcript of It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia...

Page 1: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it!

Celebrating Rural Georgia

Georgia Forestry CommissionAugust 2006

Susan ReischUrban & Community Forestry Coordinator

Page 2: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Urban & Community Forestry

• All trees, vegetation, watersheds and wildlife in urban areas, developed areas or communities.

• State and local govt. highway rights-of-way, greenspace, undeveloped forests, parks, private and commercial land.

• Management of these resources.

Page 3: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Community Forestry Partners

• USDA Forest Service• Georgia Urban Forest

Council• State and local govt’s.• Utilities• Tree care companies• Contractors and

landscapers• Tree groups• Sierra Club

• Cooperative Extension• Georgia Conservancy• Master Gardeners and

Garden Clubs• RC&Ds• RDCs• Land Trusts• NRCS• Developers/Homebuilders

Page 4: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Benefits of Urban Trees

• Environmental• Social • Economic• Health

Page 5: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Did you know?

• Surgical patients heal faster with a view of trees• Shoppers spend up to 10% more in tree-lined

business districts• Trees lure people outdoors to walk, bike and hike

leading to an increase in physical activity• Children with ADHD are better able to concentrate

after activities in green settings

Page 6: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Resources

• Tree City USA• Urban & Community Forestry Grants - management

plans, tree ordinances, arborists, tree groups• Five-Year Plan for Georgia’s Urban & Community

Forest• Georgia Model Urban Forest Book• www.gatrees.org - Georgia Forestry Commission

Page 7: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it!

Celebrating Rural Georgia

Georgia Forestry CommissionAugust 2006

Larry MorrisSustainable Community Forestry Program

Page 8: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Georgia’s Growth 2000-2006

County Annual Growth

RateHenry 7.82 %Paulding 7.32 %Newton 7.17 %Forsyth 6.82 % Cherokee 5.95 %Barrow 5.72 %Walton 4.88 %Gwinnett 4.77 %Douglas 4.75 %Jackson 4.62 %Coweta 4.56 %Bryan 4.39 %Dawson 4.27 %Effingham 4.25 %Gilmer 4.15 %White 4.14 %Pike

4.09 %Pickens 4.08 %Carroll 4.07 %Fannin 4.01 %Lumpkin 3.89 %Union 3.87 %Lee 3.84 %

• 23 of Top 100 growth counties in US• 10.8% growth rate in last five years• From 9MM to 18MM by 2030

Page 9: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

More than 50% of Georgia homes are currently in the wildland-urban interface areas.

Georgia Housing Density

Page 10: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

So What? Who Cares? Why Trees?

• Water • Air • Economics • Fragmentation/Development

Page 11: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Trees and Water

• Water Quality/Quantity Drought & water wars 1,000 more miles impaired streams Watershed issues

• Impaired Waters In 2002, Georgia had 447 impaired waters 554 causes of impairment

Page 12: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Riparian Buffers

• BMPs and Streamside Management Zones

• Riparian Buffers Stream health rating of “good” strongly

correlated to less than 10% impervious surface and more than 60% riparian forest cover (Goetz, 2003).

Page 13: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Trees and Air

• Air Quality

Non-attainment growth PM 2.5 & prescribed burning

Page 14: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Georgia Burning Restrictions

Page 15: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Why Trees?

• Atlanta: Trees removed 1,196 metric tons of air pollution in 1994 – estimated value of service $6.5 million (Nowak, 1994.)

• Atlanta: A 20% loss of forest canopy due to urbanization has led to a 14% increase in ozone concentrations (Nowak, 2005.)

Page 16: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Trees and Local Economics

• Land divestitures

Property taxDevelopment and Growth

Page 17: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Industrial Timberland Tax Change1999 - 2003

Page 18: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Metro Atlanta – Forest Canopy

Page 19: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

54 acres of forest canopy are lost each day in the Atlanta region

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Acr

esForest Canopy 1992-2001Loss per day

Page 20: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Metro Atlanta – Impervious Surface

Page 21: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

Acr

es

28 acres of impervious surface is added to the Atlanta region each day

Impervious Surface 1992-2001Increase per day

Page 22: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

The Next Step

• 2006: Statewide canopy loss and impervious surface gain (2002-2005 - metro areas)

• 2007: Remainder of the state (2002 – 2005)

Page 23: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

Other Steps

• Tree Ordinances• Conservation Easements

Page 24: It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it! Celebrating Rural Georgia Georgia Forestry Commission August 2006 Susan Reisch Urban.

It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it!

It’s your urban forest - learn it, grow it, maintain it, enjoy it!

Georgia Forestry CommissionP.O. Box 819

Macon, GA 31202-0819

1-800-GA-TREESwww.gatrees.org