How Much Is A Living Tree Worth?

A felled tree's worth has been well documented, but it has taken awhile for the silent contributions of living trees to be quantified.

1 minute read

March 11, 2004, 1:00 PM PST

By Chris Steins @planetizen


"Forests usually produce cleaner water than developed land, so cities throughout the United States are defining watershed areas and acquiring forested land or conservation easements to protect their water supplies. New York City, for example, has maintained the largest, unfiltered water supply in the world by protecting its source high in the Catskill Mountains... 46 percent of the Washington, D.C., area is covered in trees, while 27 percent of the land is under impervious surfaces that accelerate runoff and boost temperatures during hot weather. The metro area’s tree cover is estimated to kick in $49 million in air pollution services and $4.7 billion in stormwater retention benefits each year."

Thanks to regions_work listserv

Wednesday, March 10, 2004 in Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco

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