We are in troublesome and surely very uncertain times.  But in Bristol we have something always to be happy for, and perpetually certain about. Our trees!

Tomorrow is Arbor Day — a day to plant and celebrate trees. Bristolians have in recent years celebrated the day with school kids gathered around, learning about, and planting trees. We treasure our “Urban Forest” in Bristol and, yes, celebrate it. For good reason — trees give back to our health and welfare in so many ways.

Over the past few years, hardworking residents, students, and the Conservation Commission have inventoried and catalogued more than 5,500 trees across Bristol.  iTree, a program developed by the Forestry Service and USDA, underpins this inventory and can tell us some important things about how our trees benefit us. For example:

• The 480+ trees the Town of Bristol has planted in the last 15+ years through our tree program, alone, trap 97,000 pounds of CO2 every year, improving our air quality; filter 350,000 gallons of storm water runoff per year, improving the health of our Harbors and Bays; and save one-fourth of a million kilowatt hours of electricity per year for what otherwise would have been used (and paid for) to cool our homes and buildings.
• Further, the 1,600 trees downtown trap almost a million pounds of CO2, filter over 3 million gallons of storm water, and save almost 2 million kilowatt hours of electricity every year.
• Each of these benefits have real dollar savings and cost avoidance associated with them, which the Conservation Commission will be sharing later this year in our comprehensive Tree Management Plan.

There’s more, of course. Trees beautify our town. Studies have shown they actually lower blood pressure when you’re among them, and go a long way toward making Bristol the wonderful place it is. In fact, for the 19th consecutive year, Bristol has been named a “Tree City USA” by the Arbor Day Foundation in recognition of the value we put on trees through educational activities, plantings, maintenance and ongoing stewardship.

So tomorrow, Arbor Day, celebrate our trees. And if you take a walk, (socially distanced and masked, of course) don’t forget to look up.

Tony Morettini
Bristol