Thursday 2 September 2010

Turning the concrete jungle green

Trees play an essential role in improving the quality of life in UK towns and cities, according to the Woodland Trust. Planting more trees has been shown to improve air quality, reduce ambient temperatures and benefit people's health it said in a recent report. The trust is launching a campaign to plant 20m native trees each year. "Towns and cities tend to put into sharp relief some of the key problems we are facing as a society," said lead author Mike Townsend. "So they are a good place to start when try to illustrate just where green spaces can deliver significant improvements for relatively little cost."

During a speech in May, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said: "If any organism has demonstrated an ability to multi-task, it's trees. They capture carbon and hold soils together, prevent flooding and help control our climate. They also add immeasurably to the quality of life of our towns and cities." She added that in some parts of inner London, it was calculated that each tree was deemed to be worth as much as £78,000 in terms of its benefits.

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