How Trees Help to Keep Storm Water Under Control

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Water is essential to every living creature. Preserving and protecting natural water sources creates a cleaner environment. Rain is nature's way of watering plants and trees but when they're absent the stormwater runoff can create serious problems. Proper tree maintenance, planting and placement keeps stormwater under control and helps the balance of the ecosystem.

The Arbor Day Foundation website has a great interactive model that shows how stormwater is affected by the amount of trees in an area. Treeless parking lots create heat and air pollution and increase stormwater runoff. In contrast, well-landscaped parking lots featuring regular tree maintenance slow storm runoff, keep cars cooler and shade paved surfaces increasing their longevity.

Abundant trees along with catch basins, rain gardens, more ground vegetation and reduced paved surfaces naturally help manage and control stormwater. An area with few trees suffers from overwhelmed sewage systems because there is nothing to stop the rain runoff from flooding street and parking lot drainage. Without enough trees, rivers and streams overflow and cause erosion that damages the habitat.

Trust the tree care experts at Cartwright Tree Care for all your tree maintenance and tree preservation so you can do your part to decrease stormwater runoff.