No 1 environmental concern in NW is clean water

Friends of Trees Eugene Kickoff, Oct. 22, 2011
A tree planted by a stream grows up to cool the river for native fish, filters water with its roots, and traps rain water on its leaves and limbs. (Lorna Baldwin)

This morning’s feature on Oregon Public Broadcasting reveals that NW residents’ greatest environmental concern is clean water.

If you’ve ever been caught outside in the rain and found shelter under a tree, you know how the limbs and leaves trap water. What you can’t see, though, is the extra work that the trees’ roots are also doing to protect our rivers from pollutants.

These are some of the ways trees clean our water:

  • Trees trap rain water on their leaves so it can evaporate rather than enter our storm water sewer system and spill into our rivers as combined sewer overflows during our wettest months. Rain water that streams down our streets and driveways picks up pollutants, so evaporation is much cleaner.
  • Trees absorbs rain water through their roots and keep the soil from eroding into our streams and rivers. Native fish can’t find their food in muddy water.
  • If the tree is near a stream or river, it also cools the water. Salmon and other native species will die if their water is too warm.

We’d love to hear what you know about trees and how they clean our streams and rivers.

–TR