California’s Tree Death Crisis
Our city trees are leaving us when we need them most…
Southern California’s trees are dying. Research Foresters monitoring the die-off predict 38% of urban trees in communities and neighborhoods in Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and Orange Counties could be gone. This is a real crisis for ALL Angelenos.
We need trees-- they clean our air, cool our communities and are the home for wildlife that call LA’s hills home.
THE FACTS
CAUSES:
- Climate change
- Extreme heat and drought stress
- Invasive pests, fungi and disease
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EFFECTS:
- 38% trees dead in Southern California-- totalling 27 MILLION
- Dramatic increase in heat-related death and illness among people
- Increased cost of energy and water
- Loss of flood and heat protection for our cities
- More intense, year-round wildfires
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COST:
- Removing and replacing dead trees could cost as much as $37 BILLION
We must ACT NOW to save our trees.
Acknowledging we are in the midst of a larger climate, social and economic crisis is the first step toward a solution. Even with no tree emergency, we still need to take smart action to protect communities from climate threats that are here-- TODAY.
City planners and residents need to look at our neighborhoods through the lens as if they were in a forest. That way, we have community designs that are nature-inspired to adapt for climate readiness for now and future generations.
Experts are looking to find solutions to the tree death crisis. While we don’t have a magic wand, we do plant and care for trees in mountains, schools, parks and neighborhoods that are resilient and specially selected for not being in the crosshairs of pests. We must care for and re-plant as much as possible to compensate for our losses.
