Tree Board seeks new approach to city tree care
Tree Board chair Karen Cox presented members of council with a plaque recognizing the city’s designation as a ‘Tree City USA’ and summarized the work of the Board.
WHEELING – The city of Wheeling was designated a ‘Tree City USA’ by the Arbor Day Foundation, a distinction held by 3,577 cities nationally and 17 cities in West Virginia. Karen Cox, chair of the city’s Tree Board, presented a plaque to council members during their Tuesday, Dec. 17 meeting.
During a presentation to the council, Cox, an International Society of Arboriculture certified arborist and the county’s West Virginia University Extension Agent, explained the role the Tree Board plays in the city, as well as the Board’s hopes for the future.
Among its duties include hosting the city’s annual Arbor Day celebration, applying for the ‘Tree City USA’ distinction, and maintaining a five year management plan for trees on public property.
“We educate about care of trees on public property and collaborate with the city and county agencies, departments, and commissions regarding tree concerns, and recommended and prohibited species,” Cox said. Cox encouraged the city to utilize the Tree Board’s members and their expertise on work done at the city’s green spaces.
The Tree Board has helped facilitate the planting and maintenance of hundreds of trees throughout the city, including at schools, parks, and residences.
“We have worked with [student groups] to help plant 200 trees on the hillside above Wheeling Park,” Cox said. “We have worked with nearly 300 different private citizens throughout the city to plant over 500 trees. We are working very hard to expand the tree care and tree canopy cover of our city.”
Trees are not just aesthetically pleasing, either. Studies show that streets lined with trees increase economic output at area businesses. As well, trees help reduce the heat island effect, wherein urban areas see higher temperatures due to concrete, asphalt, and other dark-colored surfaces absorbing heat and retaining it during the warmer months.
Urban tree canopies also help divert stormwater runoff from sewer systems into the ground, reducing the impact on the wastewater treatment plant.
Wheeling, like most cities in the United States, has a combined sewer system, meaning sewer water and stormwater and channeled in the same pipes to the wastewater treatment plant. When it rains, according to Water Pollution Control Division superintendent Andy Harris, this system becomes surcharged, leading the system to discharge into the Ohio River and area streams.
According to Cox, the roughly 1,000 trees under the Tree Board’s purview have “[contributed] to prevent 309,000 gallons of water entering our storm water systems. These trees are contributing some very significant services that our community needs.”
Cox expressed her concerns about historic management of trees, which often includes topping and flash cuts. These measures are used to reduce the size of a tree, but can cause the tree to become sick and damaged, shortening their life span. As well, trees that are over pruned can see their branches regrow rapidly. These branches are typically weak and more prone to breakage.
“Another problem is that over the past years the trees have not been properly maintained,” Cox said. “Some of these trees have even been injured due to improper management. That has caused these trees to decline more quickly and are going to be more expensive to maintain moving forward.”
Roughly 15% of the city’s larger trees, which excel at capturing stormwater runoff, were “dead or in a very poor condition,” according to Cox. Costs to maintain the city’s trees and remediate those at high risk would cost the city $124,000 to $500,000” over a five-year period.
“We are working towards improving the health of these trees so that as we get into a more routine pruning cycle, we’re actually going to see lower costs and expenses,” Cox said.
Through her work with the Tree Board and WVU Extension, Cox has secured a $1.5 million grant that will fund an arborist training program, a four-year urban forester position who would help manage trees during city projects, $200,000 to pay for the maintenance of trees, and $100,000 to expand the planting of trees in the city of Wheeling.
Although Cox did not request funding during her presentation, she expressed a desire to collaborate with the city more closely moving forward.
“It’s the Tree Board’s hope that the city will recognize the opportunity that these significant cost savings will provide in getting caught up with the deferred tree maintenance,” Cox said. “With planning and proactive maintenance, we will experience lower expenses related to the care of trees and the repair to infrastructure associated with tree failure.”