Two trees by Jennifer Bentson.
Storm-water runoff (from rainfall and snow melt) harms waterways by picking up pollutants such as phosphorus, oil, and bacteria as it flows over roads, driveways, parking lots, and compacted soil and carrying them into rivers, streams, and lakes.
By Susan Littlefield
What to do?
Plant a tree!
Trees, especially those in an urban landscape, help to:
- Reduce stormwater runoff.
- Capture rainfall in their canopies and release it back to the atmosphere through evaporation.
- Tree roots slow down runoff, increase the infiltration of water into the soil, and take up nutrients and other pollutants.
The USDA Forest Service estimates that just one newly planted tree can capture 76,000 gallons of rainfall and save about $500 in storm-water management costs over a 40-year life span.
This articles originally appeared on garden.org.
Lifting Up and Informing Our Communities
For over a decade, we’ve been more than just reporters, we've been your neighbors, your watchdogs, and your champions for truth.
While national headlines come and go, we stay focused on what matters most: your street, your schools, your air, your community.
We ask the tough questions. We hold power to account. And we do it with integrity, guided by facts, not spin.
At Colorado Boulevard Newspaper, we believe in science, listen to experts, and put your interests above clickbait and corporate control.
There are no shareholders here. No agendas. Just local journalism, powered by people who care.
Because we live here too.
If our work matters to you, help us keep going strong. A $5 gift or a subscription fuels real reporting that puts community first.
Please explore the many ways you could support us by clicking the blue button below.
Support
Leave a Reply