Sunday, August 12, 2012
What Trees Mean to Communities In a recent blog post, NRDC’s director of sustainable communities, Kaid Benfield shares a few impressive facts about trees, via the National Arbor Day Foundation and the US Forest Service: The net cooling effect of a young, healthy tree is equivalent to ten room-size air conditioners operating 20 hours a day. If you plant a tree today on the west side of your home, in 5 years your energy bills should be 3 percent less. In 15 years the savings will be nearly 12 percent. One acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide and puts out four tons of oxygen.  A number of studies have shown that real estate agents and home buyers assign between 10 and 23 percent of the value of a residence to the trees on the property. Surgery patients who could see a grove of deciduous trees recuperated faster and required less pain-killing medicine than matched patients who viewed only brick walls. In one study, stands of trees reduced particulates by 9 to 13 percent, and the amount of dust reaching the ground was 27 to 42 percent less under a stand of trees than in an open area. Read more. Photo: Kaid Benfield

What Trees Mean to Communities

In a recent blog post, NRDC’s director of sustainable communities, Kaid Benfield shares a few impressive facts about trees, via the National Arbor Day Foundation and the US Forest Service:

  • The net cooling effect of a young, healthy tree is equivalent to ten room-size air conditioners operating 20 hours a day.
  • If you plant a tree today on the west side of your home, in 5 years your energy bills should be 3 percent less. In 15 years the savings will be nearly 12 percent.
  • One acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide and puts out four tons of oxygen. 
  • A number of studies have shown that real estate agents and home buyers assign between 10 and 23 percent of the value of a residence to the trees on the property.
  • Surgery patients who could see a grove of deciduous trees recuperated faster and required less pain-killing medicine than matched patients who viewed only brick walls.
  • In one study, stands of trees reduced particulates by 9 to 13 percent, and the amount of dust reaching the ground was 27 to 42 percent less under a stand of trees than in an open area.

Read more.

Photo: Kaid Benfield

Posted at 10:00 AM 189 notes Tags: nrdc trees sustainable communities environment nature smarter cities smart growth

Notes

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    FUCK YEAH TREEEEES!
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    This is really neat!
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