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Davey Resource Group, Inc. Tree Inventory Analysis & Maintenance Strategy Page 11 Section 2: Functions And Benefits Trees play a vital role in the environment by providing a wide array of economic, environmental, and social benefits which far exceed the investments in planting, maintaining, and removing them. Trees reduce air pollution, improve public health outcomes, reduce stormwater runoff, sequester and store carbon, reduce energy use, and increase property value, among other benefits. ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS • Trees decrease energy consumption and moderate local climates by providing shade, cooling through their transpiration processes, and acting as windbreaks. • Trees act as mini reservoirs, helping to slow and reduce the amount of stormwater runoff and pollutants that reaches storm drains, rivers, and lakes by 20-60% (Johnson et al. 2017). • Trees reduce greenhouse gasses that can trap and retain heat in the atmosphere and cause the city to get warmer. • Trees can reduce street-level air pollution by up to 60% (Coder 1996). • Trees stabilize soil and provide a habitat for wildlife. IMPROVED PUBLIC HEALTH • Trees have been shown to prevent 1,200 heat-related deaths each year in the US (McDonald et al. 2020). • By intercepting particulate matter, trees save over 850 lives and prevent 670,000 incidents of acute respiratory symptoms in the US each year (Nowak et al. 2014). • Hospital patients recovering from surgery who had a view of a grove of trees Through their windows required fewer pain relievers, experienced fewer complications, and left the hospital sooner than similar patients who had a view of a brick wall (Ulrich 1984, 1986). • When surrounded by trees, physical signs of personal stress, such as muscle tension and pulse rate, were measurably reduced within three to four minutes (Ulrich 1991). INCREASED SAFETY & COMMUNITY • Tree-lined streets slow traffic and are safer for drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists (Swift et al. 1997, Ewing & Dumbaugh 2009). • A 10% increase in neighborhood tree canopy cover has been associated with a 12-15% reduction in violent and property crimes (Gilstad-Hayden et al. 2015, O’Neil-Dunn 2012). ECONOMIC BENEFITS • Properly placing three trees around a home can reduce energy costs for the average household by $100 to $250 per year, while shading air conditioning units can help them run up to 10% more efficiently (U.S. Department of Energy, n.d.). • Trees in a yard or neighborhood increase residential property values by an average of 10% (USDA Forest Service 2011), and commercial property rental rates are 7% higher when trees are on the property (Wolf 2007). • Shoppers spend more time and money in shopping districts with mature, healthy tree canopies, and are willing to spend 9-12% more at businesses with trees in front of them (Wolf 2005, Hughes 2013). 23