{"id":66536,"date":"2022-09-20T19:12:11","date_gmt":"2022-09-20T18:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/?p=66536"},"modified":"2022-09-20T19:14:54","modified_gmt":"2022-09-20T18:14:54","slug":"trees-as-tools-the-benefits-of-tree-cover-in-wales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/thecardiffian\/2022\/09\/20\/trees-as-tools-the-benefits-of-tree-cover-in-wales\/","title":{"rendered":"Trees as tools: The benefits of tree cover in Wales"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From mitigating the urban heat island effect to reducing the risk of flooding, how do trees benefit Welsh people?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

TREES are the biggest plants on the planet and are essential for our survival in providing oxygen, but there are many other benefits provided by increased canopy cover. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps the most topical benefit of trees is the cooling effect they provide, seen clearly when Wales reached a record-breaking temperature of 37.1\u00b0C on Tuesday, July 19 this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Record-breaking<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Hawarden Airport, in Flintshire, North Wales, broke Welsh temperature records during July\u2019s heatwave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Natural Resources Wales\u2019 landmark canopy cover survey<\/a>, Saltney, the nearest town to Hawarden, was named as a \u2018priority town\u2019 for adoption of a strategic approach to increase tree cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report said: \u201cSaltney stands out for its particularly low cover at 5.5%.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is well below the \u2018at least 20% tree cover in Wales\u2019 towns and cities by 2030\u2019 that has been recommended to the Welsh Government by Forest Research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite the benefits of increasing canopy cover, Saltney showed continued overall canopy loss, and this is concerning given that trees are difficult to replace.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nigel Pugh, Campaigns Lead for Woodland Trust Cymru, said: \u201cThe first rule with trees is to protect what you already have, because trees are pretty much irreplaceable. This is because ancient and veteran trees are much better at storing carbon and providing shade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Woodland Trust analysis<\/a> found that although ancient and long-established trees only make up about a quarter of British woodlands, they lock up more than a third of the total carbon stored by trees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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