The Arbor Day Foundation’s Energy-Saving Trees and Community Canopy Programs Launch Fall Planting Season

LINCOLN, Neb., October 17, 2018 /3BL Media/ – The Arbor Day Foundation announced today the beginning of its fall tree planting initiatives through its Energy-Saving Trees and Community Canopy programs. Through these two community-based consumer education programs, more than 27,000 trees will be distributed by 29 partners including utility companies, cities, states, nonprofits and corporate partners across the United States, bringing the total number of trees placed in homeowner’s, customers, communities and employee’s hands free of charge over the last three years to more than 285,000.

Energy-Saving Trees is a research-based, easy-to-use online mapping tool that takes the guesswork out of tree planting. Local utility companies partner with the Arbor Day Foundation to provide trees to their local customers, helping to promote energy savings.  By entering simple information about your home and yard, the tool calculates where to specifically and strategically plant trees for the greatest energy- and money-saving benefits. Planting the right tree in the right place is key to maximizing the energy-saving benefits that trees provide. When planted properly, a single tree can save a homeowner up to 20% on energy costs.  Additionally, trees provide energy savings to the homeowner. They also provide tangible benefits for the entire community: improved air quality, reduced storm water runoff, beautification of your neighborhood, reduced urban heat island effect and a smaller carbon footprint, just to name a few.

“At Duke Energy, we love trees and know our customers do too,” said Nick Esposito, Duke Energy Florida
Sr. Vegetation Management Specialist.  “Our partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation has provided a great way to give back to our customers while informing them of the benefits of trees, where to plant them to maximize those benefits, and how to prevent conflicts with overhead power lines.”

Similar to the Energy Saving-Trees program, the Community Canopy program is designed to offer companies, cities, states and nonprofit organizations a turnkey approach to providing trees to customers, employees or other members of their community. Community Canopy provides both the mechanism and the strategy for offering a sustainable program to community residents that can impact energy conservation, water management, air quality and carbon sequestration. Like the Energy-Savings Tree program, the Community Canopy program provides homeowners with trees and education, ensuring they plant the right tree in the right place. Trees are reserved through an online mapping tool that takes the guesswork out of where to plant the tree on a specific property that will help maximize the air, water, energy and carbon benefits of their tree.

"We were looking for a creative and user-friendly way to engage our residents about urban forestry,” said Ian Jurgensen, Sustainability Project Manager, Office of Sustainability and Energy, City of Orlando. “The Community Canopy program is the perfect fit for combining functionality, education and technology to help get trees planted in the City of Orlando."

New partners this season include: Boulder County, Colorado, California Urban Forest Council, City of Bremerton, Washington, Cleveland Tree Coalition, Ohio, City of Fountain, Colorado, City of Highland, Indiana, Entergy (TX, MS, AK and LA) as well as the State of Delaware (Dover). Returning partners for the fall season include: Avista Utility, BGE, Centerpoint Energy, City of Orlando, City of Sarasota, FL, City of Spokane, WA, Cleveland Clinic, Edmond Electric, Liberty Utilities, Howard Hughes Corporation, Idaho Power, Utilities Commission of New Smyrna Beach, FL, OG&E, Oncor, Puget Sound Energy, Rappahannock Electric Cooperative, SMUD, State of Rhode Island, Taking Root and Tullahoma Utilities Authority.

Trees from these two programs are projected to save $2.6 million in energy and provide $6.2 million in total environmental benefits. The online tool for both programs was made possible through a grant from the UPS Foundation. It was developed by the Davey Tree Expert Company and the Arbor Day Foundation, and powered by i-Tree research. To learn more about getting your community involved in Energy-Saving Trees or Community Canopy please visit arborday.org.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

About the Arbor Day Foundation
Founded in 1972, the Arbor Day Foundation has grown to become the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees, with more than one million members, supporters and valued partners. Since 1972, more than 300 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted in neighborhoods, communities, cities and forests throughout the world. Our vision is to help others understand and use trees as a solution to many of the global issues we face today, including air quality, water quality, climate change, deforestation, poverty and hunger.

As one of the world's largest operating conservation foundations, the Arbor Day Foundation, through its members, partners and programs, educates and engages stakeholders and communities across the globe to involve themselves in its mission of planting, nurturing and celebrating trees. More information is available at arborday.org.

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