An i-Tree Benefit Analysis for the for the Cities of Bellevue, Covington, Florence, Fort Thomas, and Newport Kentucky Presented by: The Northern Kentucky Urban and Community Forestry Council

Urban forests provide numerous benefits to society, and now these important benefits can be accurately quantified. U.S. Forest Service’s Urban Forests Effects Model (UFORE) Urban Forest Effects and Values

Designed to provide information to aid cities, counties, and urban forest managers with: Management Planning Design Budget Decisions

What Does UFORE Assess? Forest structure and health - aid in urban forest management Carbon storage and sequestration - aid in carbon accounting & potential carbon credits Building energy use effects - accounting for direct savings to property owners Air pollution removal - aid in developing plans to improve air quality Potential pest impacts - understand the risk of invasive pests

Northern Kentucky Urban Forest UFORE Analysis Summary Number of Trees11,867 Top 3 SpeciesCallery Pear, Red Maple, Honeylocust Population <12” DBH75% Trees Susceptible to Insect Threats89% Pollution Removal17,781 lbs/year, at $44,634 year Carbon Storage3,059 tons, at $69,745 year Compensatory Value$17,134,800 Total Value of Benefits$17,249,179 Value per Tree$1,450

Species Distribution (top 3 species) Bellevue Reported 710 Trees Callery Pear (28 %) Cherry (13%) Crabapple (9%) Covington Reported 3,928 Trees Callery Pear (26 %) Honeylocust (9%) Red Maple (8%) Florence Reported 3,269 Trees Callery Pear (14 %) Sugar Maple (5%) Crabapple (5%) Fort Thomas Reported 1,686 Trees Callery Pear (17 %) Silver Maple (9%) Sugar Maple (7%) Newport Reported 2,274 Trees Red Maple (24 %) Callery Pear (18%) Honeylocust (6%)

Tree Size Distribution Bellevue

Covington

Florence

Fort Thomas

Tree Size Distribution Newport

Compensatory Value of the Urban Forest Total Value of Northern Kentucky Trees $ 17,134,800 Bellevue Trees $ 814,300 Covington Trees $ 5,396,300 Florence Trees $ 2,145,900 Fort Thomas Trees $ 5,683,400 Newport Trees $ 3,094,900

Urban Forest Benefits Trees perform the following beneficial functions that can be translated into economic values Removal of air pollutants ozone (O 3 ), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide(SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), and particulate matter less than 10 microns (PM10) Decrease energy costs shading and cooling effects of trees Carbon storage and sequestration Stormwater mitigation Increase property value

Value of Air Pollution Removal ozone (O 3 ), carbon monoxide (CO), sulfur dioxide(SO 2 ), nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ), and particulate matter less than 10 microns (PM10) Northern Kentucky 17,781 lbs/year at $ 44,634 year Bellevue 907 lbs/year at $ 2,275 year Covington 5,998 lbs/year at $ 15,033 year Florence 2,422 lbs/year at $ 6,111 year Fort Thomas 4,455 lbs/year at $ 11,182 year Newport 3,999 lbs/year at $ 10,032 year

Carbon Storage & Sequestration Carbon Storage – Carbon currently held within tree tissues (roots, stems, and branches) from year to year Carbon Sequestration Carbon Sequestration – Estimate of carbon that is removed annually from the atmosphere by trees and soil to be later stored in tissue.

Northern Kentucky 85 tons/year absorbed & 3,059 tons stored = $ 69,745* Bellevue 5 tons/year absorbed & 137 tons stored = $ 2,275 Covington 30 tons/year absorbed & 906 tons stored = $ 20,657 Florence 12 tons/year absorbed & 338 tons stored = $ 7,706 Fort Thomas 20 tons/year absorbed & 1,113 tons stored = $ 25,376 Newport 18 tons/year absorbed & 565 tons stored = $ 12,882 * market value based on a USFS estimate of $22.80 per ton Value of Carbon Storage and Sequestration

Asian Longhorned Beetle Current infestations confined to New York and Chicago Hardwood trees are susceptible Emerald Ash Borer Current infestations include, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and West Virginia Ash trees are susceptible European Gypsy Moth Current infestations include parts of West Virginia, Ohio and other eastern states Feed on 500 different plant species Insect Threats

Susceptible Populations of Trees to the Asian Longhorned Beetle

Susceptible Populations of Trees to the Emerald Ash Borer

Susceptible Populations of Trees to the European Gypsy Moth

UFORE Growth Projections and Benefits What would the benefits be if the Northern Kentucky tree canopy cover was increased? 5% 10% 15%

UFORE Population Projector Predicts benefits for: Carbon Storage Avoided Carbon Emissions Air Pollution Removal

Projected Benefits Carbon Storage (tons/year) Estimated Market Value Avoided Carbon Emissions (tC/year) Estimated Market Value Air Pollution Removal (tons/year) Estimated Market Value Total Value Existing Public Trees 3,058$69,722n/a 2.9$14,561$84,283 5% Canopy Increase 6,160$139,87158$1,3236.3$31,621$172,815 10% Canopy Increase 9,347$211,34588$2,0069.7$48,676$262,027 15% Canopy Increase 12,534$282,82016$2, $65,731$207,262

Trees Are Great! Environmental & Economic Benefits Quality of Life Recreation Wildlife Habitat Renewable Resource

For More Information… USFS i-Tree Kentucky Division of Forestry Northern Kentucky Urban & Community Forestry Council www. nkyurbanforestry.org