American Forests Unveils CITYgreen 5.0

American Forests
Monday, 13 May 2002

Nonprofit Provides New Emphasis on the Environmental and Economical Benefits of Urban Tree Cover

AMERICAN FORESTS unveiled the latest in CITYgreen software, a comprehensive, user-friendly program that allows people living in metro areas to translate tree cover into municipal cost savings. Now in its fifth generation, CITYgreen 5.0 takes urban forest ecosystem analysis to the next level, rewriting the product's software to allow it to investigate larger areas such as watersheds, political boundaries within cities, or entire city areas. In most cases, cities can save millions of dollars with better tree cover planning. For the first time, visitors can download CITYgreen 5.0 and the sample data needed to evaluate the software on a trial basis at www.americanforests.org .

In 1996, CITYgreen was created by conservation professionals at AMERICAN FORESTS in an attempt to make the financial case for urban trees. Based on the most up-to-date, peer reviewed science, CITYgreen 5.0 uses data derived from high-resolution satellite imagery to allow cities and conservation groups to calculate the economic and environmental benefits that trees provide in urban areas. The new version runs faster, more efficiently, and allows users to access a wider variety of images, including high-resolution classified satellite data. With the help of these detailed images, CITYgreen 5.0 gives individual communities the ability to analyze tree cover and create a detailed analysis right down to the last tree.

Over the last 30 years, countless metropolitan areas in the United States have reported significant declines in tree canopy cover, a loss directly correlating to rising urban populations. AMERICAN FORESTS estimates losses of roughly 30% in natural tree cover over the last several decades in major urban areas throughout the United States.

Tree cover provides enormous benefits by reducing air pollution, slowing stormwater runoff, and helping us conserve energy. Cities are grappling to meet regulatory requirements for air and water quality; failing to do so jeopardizes federal funding for public projects. CITYgreen provides urban leaders a much-needed financial case for urban tree cover.

To help metropolitan regions understand how their tree canopy cover has changed over time, AMERICAN FORESTS has developed a process to classify forest canopy by using satellite data collected over three decades. AMERICAN FORESTS analysts then calculate the economic benefits of trees using CITYgreen software. For instance, Salem, Oregon's natural resources department used CITYgreen 5.0 to evaluate and assess changes in the forest canopy of the area's 12 watersheds. The city's tree cover is currently at 17 percent. In stormwater storage costs alone, CITYgreen provided information showing that Salem could save $17.5 million, just by increasing tree cover to 25 percent. These success stories and other useful information can be viewed online at http://www.americanforests.org.

In addition, recent, full-color reports from various cities across the United States can be downloaded for use. These reports include the metropolitan areas of Atlanta, Georgia; Chesapeake Bay; Puget Sound; Garland, Texas; Canton-Akron, Ohio; Houston, Texas; and Denver, Colorado. From this site, visitors can also download CITYgreen 5.0 and the sample data needed to evaluate the software. This demonstration copy is licensed by American Forests for evaluation purposes only. Any questions may be directed to Communications Director Rachel Brittin at (202) 955-4500 x234 or rbrittin@amfor.org

For more information, or to contact American Forests, see their website at: www.americanforests.org