Sackets Harbor offering four kinds of trees for sale as part of fundraiser; Sackets Harbor, NY

Watertown Daily Times Sackets Harbor offering four kinds of trees for sale as part of fundraiser:
Northern red oaks, swamp white oaks, Eastern redbuds and sugar maples will start to help shade and beautify the village as soon as the ground thaws.
The village tree committee has launched a tree fundraiser in an effort to build up the committee's fund balance and is offering for sale a selection of four different kinds of trees.
'Anyone can buy the trees,' said Kelly E. Reinhardt, chairwoman of the committee. 'The trees are easy to plant and will reach the height of surrounding trees quickly. The trees are good for maintaining temperature in the summer and they can increase property value.'
In previous years, the committee has planted trees in the village-owned margins of residents' front yards, free of charge, for people who requested them, she said.

City gives away 3,000 trees; Rocky Mount, NC

The Rocky Mount Telegram:
For many years, three towering pecan trees shaded Gwendolyn Archabell’s East Rocky Mount home from summer heat and gave her yard character during the fall and spring. Since Hurricane Floyd uprooted the trees 10 years ago, Archabell said Monday, something has been missing.
Archabell was one of a few hundred people who picked up two free crepe myrtle saplings on the first day of the annual Rocky Mount Tree Giveaway at City Hall.
“I hope these will bring a little shade back to the yard and maybe a little color, too,” Archabell said.
The tree giveaway, which runs through 5 p.m. today, is being held by the Rocky Mount Tree Advisory Board in collaboration with the city utilities department and Keep America Beautiful.

Shire of Mundaring offers trees to residents to combat environmental problems; Mundaring, Australia

Tree Canopy Application Form:
Shire of Mundaring offers trees to residential property owners via Tree Canopy Application Form.

Tree Planting to Save Energy; Phoenix, AZ

Tree Planting to Save Energy - Western Resource Advocates:
Designing Community Tree Planting Programs for Energy Conservation
Energy savings can grow in your yard! A report by Western Resource Advocates explores the substantial energy savings that can be reaped, and the increased quality of life obtained, by planting shade trees to shelter houses from summer heat. Through coordinated urban treeplanting programs, electrical utilities can benefit from substantial reductions in electricity demand, especially from mid-day peak loads. This report demonstrates that tree planting can be a very viable tool for reducing electricity demand.
The report, 'Phoenix Green: Designing a Community Tree Planting Program for Phoenix, Arizona' lays out how southwestern cities can design a tree planting program that can effectively cut domestic and industrial cooling costs. The benefits are extensive and the costs reasonable to implement such a plan.
As unshaded and paved surfaces proliferate in fast growing southwestern cities, a phenomenon called the 'urban heat island effect' is creating climates in cities that are even hotter than the surrounding deserts. Trees are an efficient method of mitigating the urban heating effect. At present, Phoenix has less than an estimated 13% vegetative coverage of any type, when 25% coverage of trees is deemed healthy for a southwestern city. Among the benefits of tree planting are:
- Estimated electricty savings per year per mature tree shading sun-struck side of house = 214 kWh
- 3 mature tress would reduce a house’s electricity consumption by about 4.6% per year
- For each 10,000 shade trees planted, CO2 emissions from power plants would decline by 15,000 metric tons over a 30 year period
- Shade trees are cost effective energy efficiency measures (costs of shade tree program are less than utility costs for generating electricity).

New report outlines energy savings of shade trees, calls for 100,000 new trees on residential properties in the next decade; Phoenix, AZ

Lawn & Landscape Magazine : News New report outlines energy savings of shade trees:
Planting shade trees around homes and buildings is more than just an aesthetic consideration, it is an effective way to reduce energy bills, too, according to a new report by Western Resource Advocates.
The conservation group’s report, “Phoenix Green: Designing a Community Tree Planting Program for Phoenix, Arizona,” provides a blueprint for how communities can establish, fund and manage tree planting programs to reduce electricity consumption. The report draws on the experience of two dozen community tree planting organizations around the country.
“A large-scale tree-planting program in Phoenix would provide enormous benefits, including reducing electricity demand for air conditioning by providing shade to homes and businesses,” said David Berry, the report author and chief of policy analysis for Western Resource Advocates. “To shade Phoenix effectively and in an expeditious manner, we need to plant at least 10,000 residential shade trees per year over the next 10 years.”

Valuation of Tree Canopy on Property Values of Six Communities in Cincinnati, OH

Author: Dimke, Kelley C.
Description: The value of the urban forest as a component of the urban environment is significant. Environmental benefits of the urban forest include improved air quality, energy conservation through reduction of heating and cooling costs, climate moderation, flood control, reduction in noise levels and wildlife habitat. The urban forest also provides many social benefits. Studies have shown that trees reduce stress and improve the physical health of urbanites. Financial support for urban forestry in many cities is on the decline. The objective of this research was to evaluate the impact trees have on property values of six communities (Bond Hill, Carthage, Clifton, Hyde Park, Kennedy Heights and North Avondale) of varying socio-economic levels in Cincinnati, Ohio. Tax assessor records were obtained from property sales between the years 2000 and 2005. One hundred sites were randomly selected from each of the six communities. Data were collected from each site during the winter as well as the summer months. Dominant genus, caliper of dominant genus, estimate of tree cover, and overall property maintenance were recorded. Using the hedonic method of cost benefit analysis it was determined that each percentage increase in tree cover added $783.98 to the property value. The average value of tree canopy across the 600 sites is $20,226 or 10.7% of the sale price of the home. The findings from this research will be useful to Urban Forestry Departments in their requests for funding.

Montgomery County RainScapes program offers rebates of up to $600 for Urban Tree Canopy as stormwater and energy reduction practice on residential and commercial properties; Montgomery County, MD

Montgomery County Rainscapes program

The mission of the RainScapes Program is to promote sustainable stormwater management practices throughout Montgomery County that support the County's water quality and runoff reduction requirements for its NPDES MS 4 Permit

Why are only certain watersheds eligible for the Urban Tree Rebate?


The watersheds named in the Urban Tree Rebate are those which have lost a significant portion of their Urban Tree Canopy. This rebate is to encourage tree planting in those areas and tree placement on the property should be done to provide shading of impervious surfaces and Heating/ cooling units.

Mature tree canopy - great for reducing energy expenditures, not so great for federal tax credits for energy efficiency upgrades; USA

Need tax credits this year? Check out energy efficient home upgrades - Green House - USATODAY.com: Alas, since most of the federal credits are for existing homes, I looked at the ones for solar, wind, geothermal and fuel cells. Because our street's tree canopy makes our lot so shady, solar isn't viable. It's not windy, so a turbine makes no sense.
I focused on geothermal heating/cooling and got multiple bids, which were extremely expensive -- about $65,000. I'm convinced the contractors jacked up their prices to account for the tax credit I'd get. Bottom line: Since we're building a well-insulated house, we couldn't justify the cost. Based on our energy modeling, the payback period would probably be 20 years or more. We'll use a very high-efficiency conventional gas furnace.
So for my new ultra-efficient home, which I expect will get the top rating from the U.S. Green Building Council and the National Association of Home Builders, the amount I'll get in federal energy-efficiency tax credits: Zero.

Tree canopy goal, trees and overhead lines dominate City Manager's report to Council; Bowie, MD

City of Bowie - Weekly Status Report:
The Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) discussed a possible Urban Tree Canopy goal for the City at their November 4th Regular Meeting. After much discussion concerning the amount of tree cover removed by BGE as part of the Electric Reliability Action Plan and the high number of unclaimed resident vouchers from the BGE program, the EAC passed a motion to adopt a statement to take to City Council. The statement endorses the concept of asking BGE to provide the City all, or a portion of, unredeemed vouchers. The EAC believes the resulting pool of funds could be used to support an incentive program for residents to plant trees on their lots. The Urban Tree Canopy study completed for the City this year indicated that the tree canopy goal cannot be met on public land alone and the most potential for implementing the goal is on private land.

ARC honors Roswell for green efforts including tree planting for demand-side energy reduction; Atlanta, GA

ARC honors Roswell for green efforts ajc.com:
This month, Roswell became the first municipality in the metro area certified under the ARC’s Green Communities Program on the Silver Level. The ARC launched the program last year to improve environmental stewardship.
The ARC said Roswell improved energy performance through various efforts, such as replacing traffic signals and school zone flashers with LED bulbs and using solar-power lighting at a dog park.
The city also created a public-private Tree Planting Partnership to improve the tree canopy; it has resulted in the planting of 788 hardwoods and 3,838 shrubs and flowers.

Partnership between city and business leverages municipal buying power to incentivize private property planting; Wyoming, OH

Tree program urges residents to branch out - Wyoming News at Cincinnati.com:

Contributed By Jenny Callison freelance contributor

Thanks to an arrangement between the City of Wyoming and Cassinelli’s Nurseries, Wyoming residents can purchase shade at a discount.

A variety of nursery-grown trees are available, including river birch and varieties of maple, cherry, elm, cypress and spruce. The goal, according to Wyoming’s Urban Forestry Board, is to allow residents to replace damaged or downed trees and to maintain a healthy tree canopy in the community for future generations.

Prices reflect a municipal discount and include delivery and professional installation. Care instructions are provided.

Sustainable Design Student Outlines Plan for Increasing the City of Chicago’s tree canopy; Chicago, IL

Steven can plan » Increasing the City of Chicago’s tree canopy:
The assignment: You are on a team working with the City of Chicago on increasing the City’s tree canopy from just under 15% to 25%. What would you recommend? Please bear in mind that most city staff feel that they have covered most city owned land and that to reach the goal they will have to get private landowners to plant the trees. How can we get them to do this? What types of parcels present opportunities?
The class: Sustainable Development Techniques
I’ve identified four parcel types that present opportunities to increase the City of Chicago’s tree canopy from 15% to 25%.
1. Existing surface parking lots, both private and public
2. New surface and multi-level parking lots, both private and public
3. Schools, both public and private
4. Condemn private lots

Falls Church Takes 1st Place Prize from Municipal League for City Tree Program; Falls Church, VA

Falls Church Takes 1st Place for City Tree Program Falls Church News-Press Online:
The City of Falls Church was awarded a first-place winner in the 2009 Virginia Municipal League Achievement Awards competition for its tree planting program. The VML Award plaque will be presented at tonight's City Council meeting.

The City received the award for its 'Branching Out' tree-planting initiative in the category for communities with populations between 10,001 and 35,000. The program builds upon the city's longstanding commitment of planting trees in public rights of way by expanding the plantings onto private property.

'Branching Out ' is a relatively new undertaking of the Neighborhood Tree Program (NTP), a public-private partnership of the City of Falls Church, and the Falls Church Village Preservation and Improvement Society. The NTP is managed through the City's Urban Forestry program.

TreeBaltimore kicks off with free trees, park tree planting under $300,000 grant; Baltimore, MD

TreeBaltimore Kicks Off With Free Trees - Baltimore News Story - WBAL Baltimore: TreeBaltimore, the city's effort to grow a tree canopy throughout the city, kicked off Saturday with Mayor Sheila Dixon, representatives from BGE and Constellation Energy and a host of other city officials and environmental activists on hand.
“TreeBaltimore is a key component of the city’s sustainability plan, and is aimed at preserving and increasing our tree cover to create a greener, healthier and more vibrant city,” said Dixon. “We believe that Baltimore has a green future. It is our responsibility to work with each other to care for this city we love so much. Constellation’s support gives us a head start on making Baltimore a greener city now and in the future.”

City and Constellation Energy partner to sponsor tree giveaway in support of TreeBaltimore; Baltimore, MD

B'More Green: Weekend tip: Free trees for B'moreans - An environmental blog for everyday living - baltimoresun.com:
The leaves may be falling like mad, but it's not too late to plant another tree. Weekend arborists who show up Saturday morning (Nov. 7) at DeWees Park in North Baltimore can pick up a free seedling, courtesy of a new partnership between the city and Constellation Energy. Red oak, willow oak, redbud and river birch can be had for the asking.
The power company has pledged to kick in $300,000 over the next three years to help increase Baltimore's tree canopy through plantings and tree maintenance in neighborhoods and at schools. TreeBaltimore, as the effort is known, is part of Mayor Sheila Dixon's Cleaner, Greener Baltimore initiative. It aims to double the city's tree canopy within 30 years.

Free SMUD trees support the 5 million tree campaign; Sacramento, CA

Sacramento Press / Free SMUD trees support the 5 million tree campaign:
Tree clean our air and water, store carbon in their trunks, create habitat for wildlife, reduce air pollution, increase property values, and provide countless other benefits. The Sacramento Tree Foundation works to leverage all of the benefits that trees provide to create healthy and sustainable communities through building the best urban forest in the Sacramento region. A major keystone in building the best urban forest is the Greenprint initiative, a multi-decade regional framework created to meet Sacramento's sustainability and livability goals by expanding urban forests and optimizing the benefits of tree canopies. Greenprint partners, comprised of 22 cities and 6 counties, have agreed to double their tree canopy over the next 40 years. In order to achieve this goal, we need to plant 5 million new trees by the year 2025.

Town initiates Native Tree Canopy program to help private property owners; CHevy Chase, MD

Chevy Chase project to restore native trees:
Six years ago during Hurricane Isabel, Daniel Zwerdling-Rothschild was doing yoga with his wife, Barbara, in their living room when they heard what sounded like an explosion overhead. They leaped off their mats, just before a majestic oak tree on their property came crashing through the ceiling and landing where they had been sitting moments before.
They ended up having to rebuild their house in the town of Chevy Chase and moved into the new structure last June. But a lingering concern remains for the oak tree they lost and several other trees the couple had to cut down in the wake of Isabel. They planted a few smaller trees to try to make up the difference, but their yard still isn't what it used to be.

Governor creates state-wide planting program resulting in the planting of 22,000 trees to date; Maryland

Cumberland Times-News - Plant a tree:
When Gov. Martin O’Malley visited Cumberland a year ago to help honor students from Cresaptown Elementary and Fort Hill High schools, the students planted trees as part of the city’s urban tree canopy program.

Cresaptown had been recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School, and Fort Hill science teacher Mac Sloan had established a native tree nursery and a solar energy project.

O’Malley had just established his own “Marylanders Plant Trees” program, and Marylanders around the state have responded by planting about 22,000 trees.

Program incentivizes tree planting with hopes of raising UTC from 12% to 25%; Kelowna, British Columbia

Kelowna’s tree count gets boosted Kelowna.com:
The Okanagan’s tree canopy became a bit more expansive yesterday due to the NeighbourWoods program.
More than 100 trees were purchased and planted in local neighbourhoods as part of a City of Kelowna pilot project.
“We were promoting buying a $100 tree for $30, to increase tree coverage in the city, which is quite low,” said Mayor Sharon Shepherd at a tree planting ceremony at Carney Park.
Currently, this city’s tree coverage sits at around 12 per cent, and the aim is to raise it to 25 per cent of — and to also make sure the tree species planted are diverse.

NeighbourWoods ’hoods selected for tree program; Kelowna, British Columbia

NeighbourWoods ’hoods selected for tree program Kelowna.com:
Kelowna neighbourhoods will receive trees delivered by City staff on Oct. 24 to mark International Day of Climate Action.
The NeighbourWoods pilot project was designed by the City’s Parks Services to increase the Kelowna’s urban tree canopy, one neighbourhood at a time. Residents signed up a minimum of 20 properties to have trees delivered to their neighbourhood at a reduced cost of $30 per tree.
The neighbourhoods selected to receive trees on Saturday are Quail Ridge, Glenmore, Clifton Road and Downtown. Trees will also be delivered at a later date to a 58-unit complex in Rutland run by the Okanagan Housing Cooperative