George Washington and his company were, of course, not the only ones harvesting the lumber from American wetlands. In the last 300 years, the majority of wetlands in the contiguous United States have been lost to logging or converted to land for agriculture or urban development. When European colonizers first arrived in the 1600s, the land was covered in approximately 221 million acres of wetlands - by the 1980s, only 103 million acres remained. Twenty-two states have lost 50% or more of their wetland forests and six states have lost more than 85%.

Through the 1700s especially, wetlands and swamps in particular were considered blights on what could be prosperous land. They “bred disease”, restricted travel, and took up rich soil where crops could be instead - far from favorable for frontier folk. The choice to clear the wetlands seemed natural, because these new settlers were oblivious to the resources that prospered in them and the protection they provided.

In the mid-1800s, the US government passed the Swamp Land Acts of 1849, 1850, and 1860 – each turning federal land containing swamps over to states that promised to drain them. During this time, the US was going through a period of rapid expansion. The population was growing quickly, both through domestic childbirth and immigration. While the country was also expanding westward, the need for farmable land nearby was high. So, again, the choice to clear more wetlands seemed natural.

Over the centuries, the American wetlands - refashioned to suit its new settlers - have changed drastically. While clearing the wetlands made sense at the time, we’ve come to learn that wetlands are invaluable resources and the long-term effects of this habitat loss has become clear.

Wetlands are an essential part of regional ecosystems – in which we’re included. We need wetlands to sustain our water supply, both because they work to filter pollutants and because they’re a source of water. They also work to protect our communities from severe weather, like hurricanes and flooding, by dampening the force with which they hit the land and by preventing land corrosion. Additionally, wetlands sequester approximately 20-30% of global carbon emissions - peatlands on their own store twice as much carbon as the world’s forests despite covering only 3% of the planet’s surface. These areas are also home to unique wildlife and fascinating plants; one-third of the currently-listed endangered species rely on wetlands to survive.

As the second driest state in the country, it’s no surprise that wetlands account for only 1% of Utah’s total land coverage. Because they’re so rare within our state, that makes them even more valuable. In an arid landscape, we need all the water we can get and our wetlands provide a hefty portion of our water supply. They’re also essential tools in preventing flooding, the costliest and most prevalent hazard in Utah. Although Utah’s wetlands are still in danger, we thankfully have many individuals in our community working to preserve and restore these valuable features of our state. Nonprofit communities (like the Sageland Collaborative and TreeUtah) along with governmental organizations (like the Utah Geological Survey) and numerous individuals throughout the state are working hard to maintain our wetlands.

To get involved with TreeUtah’s habitat restoration projects, check our events page or sign up for our newsletter to stay up to date on our latest projects.

Forests are important. They are home to 80% of the globe’s wildlife population, they reduce soil erosion, lessen the impact of floods, and they remove incredible amounts of carbon-dioxide from our atmosphere, ensuring we have breathable air. The tropical forests alone store around 250 billion tons of carbon. Without forests cleaning our air, life on Earth couldn’t continue – at least not for us – but we continue to lose our forests at a concerning rate. Between 1990 and 2015, we lost 129 million hectares of forest (nearly 500,000 square miles). While deforestation has slowed, we are far from reaching a balanced, sustainable relationship with our forests. Our forests – and us in turn – will only survive if we deploy all available means to reduce deforestation and support new growth.

Afforestation – planting forests upon land previously unforested – can be a massive undertaking, but it’s one of the few things communities can do to soften the blow of global deforestation. Thanks to the late Akira Miyawaki, Japanese botanist and specialist in natural vegetation restoration, a method for afforestation has been developed that allows for small-scale, rapid forestation. This method is now commonly known as the Miyawaki Method.

The Miyawaki Method

The Miyawaki Method was developed to support the rapid growth of diverse native plant species in relatively small spaces with minimal maintenance. The method only requires a minimum space of 1000 square feet, grows ten times faster than naturally-growing forests, and the planted forest can survive nearly maintenance-free after only three years of growth. The rapid growth of Miyawaki forests is attributed to the densely-packed planting and the use of native plant species. Native species are, of course, going to be the best candidates to thrive in the selected planting location, because they’ve evolved over the course of centuries to do just that. A biodiverse selection of plants also lends itself to the long-term stability of the forest – diversity creates a layered canopy and ecological resilience. Then, being packed closely together, they’re forced into a highly competitive race to soak up the sunlight, resulting in rapid growth. After 20-30 years, the surviving plants and trees will reach heights that would have taken 150-200 years to reach in a natural process.

The resulting tiny forest is also densely-packed with benefits. In addition to supporting local biodiversity and the benefits that always come with new trees, Miyawaki forests are also 30 times better at dust and noise reduction and absorb up to 30 times more carbon-dioxide than monoculture planting projects.

Because the Miyawaki method can be applied in areas with limited land and resources while still resulting in a flourishing forest, it’s perfect for urban settings. A small parcel of land, whether it’s an empty lot or a small portion of a public park, can easily be turned into an urban forest. Urban forests are essential in mitigating the effects of climate change – both locally and globally. Our efforts on the local-scale to rehabilitate and create new forests is an important contribution to the global concerted effort to ensure a livable planet for future generations. With critical deadlines for meaningful climate action approaching quickly, we need to act quickly. Thanks to Akira Miyawaki, we have one more tool at our disposal to make swift, meaningful change.

In short, yes, we do. Despite the megadrought and surging heatwaves, our lawns can survive, because they’re well-propagated for hardship. Of all the plants in our garden, grass is sure to be the one that needs the least amount of water to survive. Although it might brown, it’s still alive and the green will return next year. This browning is part of grass’s seasonal cycle. Like other perennials, grass enters a period of dormancy once it undergoes the stresses of their disfavored seasons. This stage in its annual cycle can be delayed with extensive watering, but our limited resources would be best spent on plants in the garden that need it more.

Trees need our help most. Arguably the most valuable plants in our gardens because of the benefits they provide for our homes and communities, trees should be our top watering priority. While grasses only need half an inch (~1 quart) of water every 2-4 weeks  to survive the season,  trees require 5-50 gallons of water a week (or more, if the tree is especially large). As sturdy as they appear to be, trees are far more delicate than grass and they need our help to survive the ongoing megadrought, which is predicted to end in 2030 at the earliest. Paired with the fact that extended drought events are expected to become more severe and more common, our focus-shift away from grass and towards trees will likely and necessarily be permanent.

Salt Lake City’s canopy has been steadily receding since the early 2000s, largely due to trees being neglected within recurring periods of drought. Without adequate water, trees either die off or they become too brittle to withstand high winds and dense snow fall, leading to broken branches or treefall. In addition to causing damage to anything beneath them when this happens, we lose the irreplaceable benefits old-growth trees provide. Benefits like cleaner air and shade – things we’ll be immeasurably thankful for in the harsh Summers ahead, things grass can’t provide. Grass doesn’t do much for us and it doesn’t need our help, so let’s concentrate on the plants that do, trees.

Trees are complex beautiful things that provide us benefits we may take for granted without realizing it. They are mighty carbon warriors who take in excess carbon out of the atmosphere and in turn oxygenate our earth. Trees are also great creators of shade, our protectors against the sun’s rays when it gets too much. Shade from tree canopy, however, is not distributed equitably here in Salt Lake City and the effects are substantially felt on the west side. At TreeUtah we are working to plant more trees each year through our West Side Initiative. All people have a right to nature and we are initiating change by planting trees.

The inaccessibility of tree canopy coverage in an urban environment inevitably leads to consequences from the heat island effect. The heat island effect is not new, but as we increasingly urbanize now and in years down the line, areas will experience higher overall temperatures (up to 25 degrees Fahrenheit more during the hottest afternoons) if greenspace is not prioritized and dark surfaces like asphalt and buildings become more dominant.

Adding trees into spaces, however, will mitigate a common concern in urban areas which is ground-level ozone. Ground-level ozone is a harmful pollutant made from the interaction of the sun, volatile organic compounds found in common household products, and nitrogen oxide from car exhaust. Experiencing hotter days because of climate change and the urban heat island certainly does not help our ground-level ozone levels. With one of the benefits of trees being that they lower air pollution, trees are one solution to improve ground-level ozone and help individuals who are medically sensitive or who may be prone to suffer from illnesses correlated to bad air quality. 

Adding things like trees in areas will also foster a sense of place and belonging for individuals because of bringing people together in outdoor spaces that seem more inviting. For further info on the social, environmental, and economic benefits provided to us each day by trees, check out our about page.

Not that long ago, the pandemic started to change the way we work. With workplace culture increasingly switching to remote, people are gravitating toward spending more time outside and participating in outdoor activities. However, we cannot reap the ultimate benefits from these experiences if basic things such as tree cover and green space are lacking. These benefits that trees provide us like improving air quality, helping the heat island, along with the change in our time spent in nature, all build up to why trees are so important in planting equitably on the streets and in places like Title I schools. Our West Side Initiative coincides with Mayor Mendenhall’s four year plan of planting an additional 1,000 trees just on the west side of Salt Lake City each year. Keep your eye out for our next community tree planting on the west side by keeping up to date on our events. 

Monday, May 16, 5PM-7:30PM

Come to a planting party along the Jordan River in Salt Lake! We will bring pizza and snacks as well as everything you need for a successful planting! Drop in anytime and stay as long as you can. We will plant trees and perennials that work together to create a thriving natural ecosystem along the trail. Sponsored by the listeners of KRCL.

Park at the small parking lot at about 1050 W Fremont Ave, Salt Lake City, UT 84104. You will see the green TreeUtah tent where you can check in and get planting!

Map pin:

https://goo.gl/maps/gNgSAZR9J1rTUGcW9