The importance of shade trees to health

I knew you were knowledgeable when you referenced dbh. So I accept that. I wish I knew more because Tampa’s Dept. Natural Resources study supposedly checked all histories and modeling. But a Cat 5 may just be too much for anything

 

Listened to the 99PI episode ironically while doing yard work. Very informative. I subscribe but need to make a point of listing more often. That's such a great podcast. Thanks for recommending the episode.

 

Good news for Tampa, though far more is needed


Local officials have secured money to help remedy Tampa’s shrinking tree canopy.

U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Tampa, announced Thursday the city had been awarded a $1 million federal grant through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Urban and Community Forestry initiative.

“We’ve seen a lot of beautiful live oaks and large trees come down,” Castor said in an interview with the Tampa Bay Times. “So that’s why the timing of this grant is so important.”

A 2021 study found Tampa’s tree canopy coverage to be at its lowest in 26 years. The city’s average annual temperature has increased by 2.5 degrees since 1891, when record-keeping began, according to the city’s Climate Action and Equity Plan.

Tampa’s trees remove 1,000 tons of air pollutants every year, according to the city report. Castor said the federal grant is focused on reducing toxic air and carbon pollution across the country.

Tampa gets $1M federal grant to plant trees to reduce heat
Tampa gets $1M federal grant to plant trees to reduce heat - Tampa Bay Times

 

Not sure what the issue is. I can only speak about locally, but the City of Tampa already maintains and trims in the rights-of-way. TECO trims trees that threaten power lines. In fact, they overdo it. Here is a piece from a recent controversy in our neighborhood about TECO's butchery

https://www.abcactionnews.com/news/...-neighborhoods-say-teco-butchered-their-trees

In terms of personal maintenance, that is a responsibility just like many other aspects of home ownership. We are replacing our roof today. All part of the burden. There is costs to keep your trees responsibly trimmed by a conscientious service, but that is part of life.

The problem is when people use the "fear" of trees to take down trees that are healthy but limit what they want to do with the lot. They can now by state law, but I had/have a problem with that. Also people who skimp and use trimmers that are cheaper but butcher and damage healthy trees. And there are people that just don't like trees, leaves, etc. But there is a societal benefit. I have limited sympathy short of some situations with older people in fixed income, etc. But disagree as a general proposition.

 

Sorry. I understand where you are coming from. Those are some terrible complications.

And good tree companies are expensive. That is a fact

 

Another study. Same results


The humble tree has long protected humans from sickness and even death—and in the modern city, it’s still doing so. As global temperatures rise, so too does the “urban heat island effect”—the tendency for cities to absorb and hold on to the sun’s energy, which is a growing public-health crisis worldwide. On a small scale, the shade under a single tree is an invaluable refuge on a blisteringly hot day. Scaling that effect up, neighborhoods with more tree cover are measurably cooler.

Now research is showing just what an impact this can have on people’s health. A new paper finds that in Los Angeles, planting more trees and deploying more reflective surfaces—something as simple as painting roofs white—could lower temperatures so dramatically, it’d cut the number of heat-related ER visits by up to 66 percent. That research follows a previous study by the same scientists finding that one in four lives lost during heat waves could be avoided with the same techniques.

City Trees Save Lives

 

Thanks about the roof - we don't have a flat roof or would.

I would be a bit cautious on what arborists tell you about oaks because of the financial incentives, especially under the new preemptive state scheme. There are unhealthy oaks that cause damage.

That said, when I used to test the issue with arborists under oath (before the state preempted, there were actual hearings under Chapter 13 of the Tampa City Code), they would not contradict the City that a healthy oak will sway by natural design in a storm but will not topple. Limbs removed by the ANZI-300 standard (I may be forgetting the precise cite) are OK in protecting the house - a healthy tree can have damaged limbs that are vulnerable. One problem is when limbs are removed without balance, such that one side is trimmed excessively. That actually makes it more likely the tree will topple, onto the bare side (house).

In reality, healthy trees absorb and protect the home in a windstorm.

 

I am talking about a healthy live oak. And what the experts have testified says they protect during windstorm. But good point on the distinction.

 

Agree totally about water oaks and even truly diseased live oaks. I say truly because it was a weird thing in Tampa over a decade ago. Tree disease seemed to stop at Kennedy avenue, because the land was more valuable in South Tampa and trees were inconvenient if your minimum house size was 4200 sq ft. Now the Heights is catching up in land value and our canopy is coming down too, though they don't need to fake it as much with the new state preemption.

But truly diseased oaks, even live oaks, are a problem

 

Agree 100%