A certified arborist, under instructions to avoid removal if at all possible, has examined each of these trees. This first phase of DDOT’s tree removal program will begin to tackle the backlog of 2,400 trees.
As seen during ice storms or Hurricane Isabel last year, weakened trees are more likely to fall or splinter into power lines, homes or cars parked on the streets.
In the aftermath of Isabel, the international media poked fun at the nation’s capital — which had many areas without electricity for days — for its reliance on overhead power lines which are vulnerable to falling tree limbs.
And we found these stats interesting: there are 114,000 live street trees (trees situated between the sidewalk and the street) in the city. The city has a goal of having 150,000 healthy trees. It has planted 10,000 new trees in the past three years and removed 5,000 “problematic” trees during the same time period.
>> For more information on D.C.’s tree canopy, check out what the local chapter of the Sierra Club has to say.
