The tree canopy

By: J. David Chapman/July 11, 2019

Let’s talk about trees. Oklahoma ranks No. 44 in the U.S. in terms of aboveground woody biomass with 28.8% coverage. Maine ranks No. 1 with 89.46%. North Dakota is last with 1.72%. In Oklahoma’s defense, we are an agriculture state and many of our trees have historically been removed to grow crops and raise livestock.

In cities, there is also a fair amount of tree removal for development efforts, creating fewer trees in the more urban areas. For built environment, city planning, and real estate purposes, we refer to tree coverage as the tree canopy. Edmond recognizes the benefits of trees and monitors tree canopy as a percentage of land mass in an effort to increase the number and size of trees in the community.

Trees provide a large number of ecosystem environmental benefits to society – particularly by carbon sequestration. Trees remove pollutants from the air, soil and water. They also provide energy savings and reduce greenhouse gas emissions due to shade provided. Along with sustainability benefits, they also provide social, economic and aesthetic benefits as well.

Like many things in life, trees provide many benefits, but also carry significant risks as well. Insurance companies, developers, homebuilders, and landlords understand these risks well. Owners of property have responsibilities with tree ownership that create liability. Most developers have an appreciation for trees in their projects, but also understand the damage root systems can cause to water and sewer lines as well as streets and sidewalks. Homeowners love wooded lots; however, homebuilders are very aware of the damage root systems can cause to foundations and wayward branches can cause to roofs.

According to insurance companies, wind and ice are the main culprits in property damage created by trees. Landlords are constantly being ask by insurance companies to mitigate risk by removing and trimming trees. Municipalities also deal with significant issues relating to trees. Trees with a potential to fall into a utility line can create a serious situation, such as power outages, surges, fires and other damage. Downed trees can also prevent ingress and egress in and out of neighborhoods for first responders in emergency situations.

We need trees and should be committed to increasing our tree canopy in the urban environments; however, we must also mitigate risk associated with the same.

J. David Chapman is an associate professor of finance and real estate at the University of Central Oklahoma (jchapman7@uco.edu).