Re-treeing a Devastated Region
February 15th, 2007 by Eric
You’ve heard me say before: snow is not unusual for the folks in the Western New York area. We get plenty every year (though not as much as out-of-towners think), and at the time of this post there is about two feet of snow on the ground, and more of the fluffy swirling around outside my window. We’re usually well-prepared come winter, and the snow is being removed before it even hits the ground. But October? Mid October? That’s a little odd even for the Queen City, and it caused a great deal of devastation.
The “Friday the 13th” October storm was an unprecedented event. For days after, the entire region was a disaster area. Coming so early in the season the trees, usually barren by the first snowfall, were still thick with leaves, allowing the snow to pile up and destroying an astonishing number of them. Conservative estimates by several different groups put the total number of trees lost somewhere between 12,000 and 20,000. While most of them were salvagable it took and will continue to take a Noah-like effort to do so, and those that can’t be saved will need replacing. How will this be done?
There have been several ideas put forth by area citizens, from commemorative posters to the auctioning of wood sculptures carved from tree stumps created by the storm, which started this January. Local businesses have donated parts of their proceeds and Re-Tree WNY, a group dedicated to this cause has big plans for arbor day this April. On top of all this, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced that:
$200,000 is being made available to local governments so they can implement long-term tree-cover restoration efforts in areas that suffered significant tree damage from the freak October snowstorm in Western New York.
There are also great tips on how to save trees that have been damaged in storms at the DEC website.
It is truly inspiring to see what a huge effect small actions by individuals and organizations can have on our environment and out communities. So give a hand to this effort by planting a tree. Or you can donate to Re-Tree WNY. Either way, please help us make progress.
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