Trees at Risk PDF Download

Author: Evelyn Herwitz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781886284609
Category : Trees in cities
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Author: Evelyn Herwitz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781886284586
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
From the Journal of Political Ecology, Vol. 8Trees At Risk: Reclaiming an Urban Forest, by Evelyn Herwitz. Worcester, MA: Chandler House Press, Inc (2001), iv, 200 pp.Reviewed by Brent Evans and Carolyn Chipman Evans, Cibolo Nature Center, Boerne, TXEvelyn Herwitz has contributed a major historical work with a strong environmental message in Trees At Risk: Reclaiming an Urban Forest. The City of Worcester, MA serves as the focal point for this evolving story of grassroots negligence and activism. The author is adept at uncovering the societal and industrial forces that carved a city out of the wilderness, and sometimes molded a little of the wilderness back into the city.An ambitious work, the book is a 200-page treasure with 16 pages of color photos, and numerous illustrations throughout. Nature lovers will also appreciate the occasional botanical information and illustrations of native trees.Trees At Risk is both a hopeful blueprint and a cautionary tale of what cities can do to protect and promote their urban forests, and what can happen if they do not. Ms. Herwitz is a skilled historian, but also a masterful wordsmith. For example: On a chill December afternoon when the hardwoods stand barren, their fallen leaves but sodden dregs of autumn's gold, Worcester's hues are clay and stone. Viewed from Mount St. James, once home to native Nipmucs, now to the College of the Holy Cross, the muted city melds with the dun-colored woodlands of surrounding hills - its red-brick factory buildings and cement offices crowding the valley floor, a glass-and-steel bank tower mirroring winter's slate sky, white and frown and beige three-deckers climbing rocky hillsides, the charcoal-gray swath of I-290snaking over streets.Come spring, though, there is green. First, a fine misting of chartreuse as the weeping willows unfurl their buds, then a wash of emerald as the sugar and Norway maples, the ashes, oaks and ginkgoes spread their leaves, until Worcester's swarthy face is softened by a sylvan veil. A city of aging factories and dreams of renewal, of ethnic pride and paternalism, of grit, ingenuity and determination, Worcester is also a city of trees.Her work reaches far beyond Worcester though, in its lessons and implications. She looks at the national picture of demising urban forests. Statistics abound: "the average life of a city tree is only 32 years - 13 if planted downtown - far short of the 150-year average life span of trees in rural settings." What's more, city tree planting and maintenance budgets have been slashed nationwide, and urban parks are also at risk. The story of the threat to Worcester's trees is the story of the relationship between Americans and nature - at times exploitative, at times romantic, and occasionally reverent. She gives a clear history of the local native landscape, and its gradual civilization. And, throughout the work she provides wonderful snippets of historical significance, like the quote from Genesis that English settlers liked to use to justify their taking of Native land: "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it." But, the settlers proved far more accomplished at subduing than replenishing, as have their offspring, even to this day.The sad history of the wasting of trees, deforestation, and industrial transformation are detailed, as are early conservation efforts in the mid-eighteenth century, and the first use ofpublic funds for tree planting, a century later. She follows the trend of the romantic ideal of pastoral land in rural cemetery design, through to the "Greening or Worcester" in 1885 with the planting of 500 trees by the Worcester Grange.The book traces the urban parks movement, and the inevitable growing demand for green space as the city expanded. Then, it chronicles the turn of the century, and the theme of "Wilderness Squandered." As the Worcester case study continues, Ms. Herwitz examined politics, the railroad, the Hurricane of "38, the Great Depression, ethnic politics and public parks, the Chestnut Blight, and Dutch Elm Disease.As the 20th century gathered momentum, the early precursors to land use controls and planned communities are seen and followed up to current times. As budget cuts and benign neglect took hold, a legacy was being squandered, and the trend was national. "A 1991 survey of urban tree care programs in 20 major American cities by the national conservation group American Forests revealed that nearly three-fourths of those communities had cut back funding for street trees, despite the fact that they had collectively planted only abut one tree for every four needed just to maintain their current tree census."Thus, the powerful story of an urban forest, lost and found again and again, teaches us to open our eyes in our own hometowns. The author then calls us to action, using global numbers that we have almost grown numb to: In the past 50 years, global deforestation and exponential acceleration of fossil fuel consumption and methane gas production have raised the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to about 25 to 30 % above levels that have prevailed for thepast 160,000 years, and could double by the 21st century.The arctic ice cap has thinned by 42%.The world's coral reefs have thinned by 27%.Rainforests could disappear in 25 - 30 years.Air pollution, acid rainIt all adds up, or maybe we should say, it all subtracts, down, down, down.But, she also provides us with hope. She points to good stewardship in Milwaukee, and other positive examples around the country. And, she discusses modern economic forces that are driven by the pressure of population growth and basic human nature. These economic forces are then seen as possible sources of support for the future of our urban forests.Our suggestion is that our cities do in fact have the economic and technological resources to grow magnificent urban forests, but they lack the political will. Further, we would say that political will, rooted in the minds and hearts of the public, can be won through education. There is an old Chinese proverb: "Think one year ahead - plant rice; think ten years ahead - plant trees; think one-hundred years ahead - educate people."And, we would finally suggest that North America's 1200+ nature centers are good places to look to. Nature centers teach environmental values, and are vital members of their communities. While school districts may be slow to advocate for social action or conservation, nature centers are busily doing just that.The education of all citizens, not just the young and not-yet-enfranchised, but the adults, the property owners, the industrial leaders, and our civic representatives - all need education. However, sending them facts and figures, and even sending them this wonderful book, will probably not do the trick. They spend the vast majority oftheir lives indoors. They need contact with nature. If you want to educate someone about the value of trees, take them to an arboretum, or a nature center, or a fabulous old urban park. Once inspired, Trees At Risk can help any community organizer understand what mistakes to avoid, what social forces are in play, and just how much truly is at risk.Evelyn Herwitz deserves the thanks of all the tree-huggers, tree-lovers, and even those not yet educated and inspired. As a boy, Brent's one great and often expressed fear of growing up was that he might someday no longer want to climb trees. Well, he's 54, and still climbing (every now and then)!

Author: Evelyn Herwitz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781886284616
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
From the Journal of Political Ecology, Vol. 8. Reviewed by Brent Evans and Carolyn Chipman Evans, Cibolo Nature Center, Boerne, TX. Evelyn Herwitz has contributed a major histori cal work with a strong environmental message in Trees At Risk: Reclaiming an Urban Forest. The City of Worcester, MA serves as the focal point for this evolving story of grassroots negligence and activism. The author is adept at uncovering the societal and industrial forces that carved a city out of the wilderness, and sometimes molded a little of the wilderness back into the city.An ambitious work, the book is a 200-page treasure with 16 pages of color photos, and numerous illustrations throughout. Nature lovers will also appreciate the occasional botanical information and illustrations of native trees.Trees At Risk is both a hopeful blueprint and a cautionary tale of what cities can do to protect and promote their urban forests, and what can happen if they do not. Ms. Herwitz is a skilled historian, but also a masterful wordsmith. For example: On a chill December afternoon when the hardwoods stand barren, their fallen leaves but sodden dregs of autumn's gold, Worcester's hues are clay and stone. Viewed from Mount St. James, once home to native Nipmucs, now to the College of the Holy Cross, the muted city melds with the dun-colored woodlands of surrounding hills - its red-brick factory buildings and cement offices crowding the valley floor, a glass-and-steel bank tower mirroring winter's slate sky, white and frown and beige three-deckers climbing rocky hillsides, the charcoal-gray swath of I-290snaking over streets.Come spring, though, there is green. First, a fine misting of chartreuse as the weeping willows unfurl their buds, then a wash of emerald as the sugar and Norway maples, the ashes, oaks and ginkgoes spread their leaves, until Worcester's swarthy face is softened by a sylvan veil. A city of aging factories and dreams of renewal, of ethnic pride and paternalism, of grit, ingenuity and determination, Worcester is also a city of trees.Her work reaches far beyond Worcester though, in its lessons and implications. She looks at the national picture of demising urban forests. Statistics abound: "the average life of a city tree is only 32 years - 13 if planted downtown - far short of the 150-year average life span of trees in rural settings." What's more, city tree planting and maintenance budgets have been slashed nationwide, and urban parks are also at risk. The story of the threat to Worcester's trees is the story of the relationship between Americans and nature - at times exploitative, at times romantic, and occasionally reverent. She gives a clear history of the local native landscape, and its gradual civilization. And, throughout the work she provides wonderful snippets of historical significance, like the quote from Genesis that English settlers liked to use to justify their taking of Native land: "Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it." But, the settlers proved far more accomplished at subduing than replenishing, as have their offspring, even to this day.The sad history of the wasting of trees, deforestation, and industrial transformation are detailed, as are early conservation efforts in the mid-eighteenth century, and the first use ofpublic funds for tree planting, a century later. She follows the trend of the romantic ideal of pastoral land in rural cemetery design, through to the "Greening or Worcester" in 1885 with the planting of 500 trees by the Worcester Grange.The book traces the urban parks movement, and the inevitable growing demand for green space as the city expanded. Then, it chronicles the turn of the century, and the theme of "Wilderness Squandered." As the Worcester case study continues, Ms. Herwitz examined politics, the railroad, the Hurricane of "38, the Great Depression, ethnic politics and public parks, the Chestnut Blight, and Dutch Elm Disease.As the 20th century gathered momentum, the early precursors to land use controls and planned communities are seen and followed up to current times. As budget cuts and benign neglect took hold, a legacy was being squandered, and the trend was national. "A 1991 survey of urban tree care programs in 20 major American cities by the national conservation group American Forests revealed that nearly three-fourths of those communities had cut back funding for street trees, despite the fact that they had collectively planted only abut one tree for every four needed just to maintain their current tree census."Thus, the powerful story of an urban forest, lost and found again and again, teaches us to open our eyes in our own hometowns. The author then calls us to action, using global numbers that we have almost grown numb to: In the past 50 years, global deforestation and exponential acceleration of fossil fuel consumption and methane gas production have raised the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere to about 25 to 30 % above levels that have prevailed for thepast 160,000 years, and could double by the 21st century.The arctic ice cap has thinned by 42%.The world's coral reefs have thinned by 27%.Rainforests could disappear in 25 - 30 years.Air pollution, acid rainIt all adds up, or maybe we should say, it all subtracts, down, down, down.But, she also provides us with hope. She points to good stewardship in Milwaukee, and other positive examples around the country. And, she discusses modern economic forces that are driven by the pressure of population growth and basic human nature. These economic forces are then seen as possible sources of support for the future of our urban forests.Our suggestion is that our cities do in fact have the economic and technological resources to grow magnificent urban forests, but they lack the political will. Further, we would say that political will, rooted in the minds and hearts of the public, can be won through education. There is an old Chinese proverb: "Think one year ahead - plant rice; think ten years ahead - plant trees; think one-hundred years ahead - educate people."And, we would finally suggest that North America's 1200+ nature centers are good places to look to. Nature centers teach environmental values, and are vital members of their communities. While school districts may be slow to advocate for social action or conservation, nature centers are busily doing just that.The education of all citizens, not just the young and not-yet-enfranchised, but the adults, the property owners, the industrial leaders, and our civic representatives - all need education. However, sending them facts and figures, and even sending them this wonderful book, will probably not do the trick. They spend the vast majority oftheir lives indoors. They need contact with nature. If you want to educate someone about the value of trees, take them to an arboretum, or a nature center, or a fabulous old urban park. Once inspired, Trees At Risk can help any community organizer understand what mistakes to avoid, what social forces are in play, and just how much truly is at risk.Evelyn Herwitz deserves the thanks of all the tree-huggers, tree-lovers, and even those not yet educated and inspired. As a boy, Brent's one great and often expressed fear of growing up was that he might someday no longer want to climb trees. Well, he's 54, and still climbing (every now and then)!

Author: Kjell Nilsson
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9048198062
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 428

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Book Description
The link between modern lifestyles and increasing levels of chronic heart disease, obesity, stress and poor mental health is a concern across the world. The cost of dealing with these conditions places a large burden on national public health budgets so that policymakers are increasingly looking at prevention as a cost-effective alternative to medical treatment. Attention is turning towards interactions between the environment and lifestyles. Exploring the relationships between health, natural environments in general, and forests in particular, this groundbreaking book is the outcome of the European Union’s COST Action E39 ‘Forests, Trees and Human Health and Wellbeing’, and draws together work carried out over four years by scientists from 25 countries working in the fields of forestry, health, environment and social sciences. While the focus is primarily on health priorities defined within Europe, this volume explicitly draws also on research from North America.

Author: Jill Jonnes
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 0143110446
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 418

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Book Description
“Far-ranging and deeply researched, Urban Forests reveals the beauty and significance of the trees around us.” —Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth Extinction “Jonnes extols the many contributions that trees make to city life and celebrates the men and women who stood up for America’s city trees over the past two centuries. . . . An authoritative account.” —Gerard Helferich, The Wall Street Journal “We all know that trees can make streets look prettier. But in her new book Urban Forests, Jill Jonnes explains how they make them safer as well.” —Sara Begley, Time Magazine A celebration of urban trees and the Americans—presidents, plant explorers, visionaries, citizen activists, scientists, nurserymen, and tree nerds—whose arboreal passions have shaped and ornamented the nation’s cities, from Jefferson’s day to the present As nature’s largest and longest-lived creations, trees play an extraordinarily important role in our cities; they are living landmarks that define space, cool the air, soothe our psyches, and connect us to nature and our past. Today, four-fifths of Americans live in or near urban areas, surrounded by millions of trees of hundreds of different species. Despite their ubiquity and familiarity, most of us take trees for granted and know little of their fascinating natural history or remarkable civic virtues. Jill Jonnes’s Urban Forests tells the captivating stories of the founding mothers and fathers of urban forestry, in addition to those arboreal advocates presently using the latest technologies to illuminate the value of trees to public health and to our urban infrastructure. The book examines such questions as the character of American urban forests and the effect that tree-rich landscaping might have on commerce, crime, and human well-being. For amateur botanists, urbanists, environmentalists, and policymakers, Urban Forests will be a revelation of one of the greatest, most productive, and most beautiful of our natural resources.

Author: Frances Seymour
Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
ISBN: 1933286865
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 389

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Book Description
Tropical forests are an undervalued asset in meeting the greatest global challenges of our time—averting climate change and promoting development. Despite their importance, tropical forests and their ecosystems are being destroyed at a high and even increasing rate in most forest-rich countries. The good news is that the science, economics, and politics are aligned to support a major international effort over the next five years to reverse tropical deforestation. Why Forests? Why Now? synthesizes the latest evidence on the importance of tropical forests in a way that is accessible to anyone interested in climate change and development and to readers already familiar with the problem of deforestation. It makes the case to decisionmakers in rich countries that rewarding developing countries for protecting their forests is urgent, affordable, and achievable.

Author: Stephanie Mansourian
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 0387291121
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 441

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Book Description
This book, published in cooperation with WWF International, integrates the restoration of forest functions into landscape conservation plans. The contents represent the collective body of knowledge and experience of WWF and its many partners - collected here for the first time. This guide will serve as a first stop for practitioners and researchers in many organizations and regions, and as a key reference on the subject.

Author: Cynthia Rosenzweig
Publisher:
ISBN: 1316603334
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 855

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Book Description
Climate Change and Cities bridges science-to-action for climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts in cities around the world.

Author: Bernhard Eduard Fernow
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Forestry
Languages : en
Pages : 460

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Book Description

Author: Geneviève Michon
Publisher:
ISBN: 9789793198224
Category : Agroforestry
Languages : en
Pages : 208

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Book Description