Did you know that forests occupy 70 million acres in our nation's cities? New studies show that trees are not only crucial to the aesthetic look of our cities; they also help clean the air and lower the temperature. Narrated by actor Sam Waterston, star of "Law And Order" and "The Killing Fields," The Forest Where We Live is a documentary produced by Louisiana Public Broadcasting which looks at successful educational and hands-on conservation programs developed around the country that try to halt the deforestation of our cities and plant new trees. "We can't live without air or water, nor can any other creature, and yet we are destroying the primary mechanism to clean our water and provide the oxygen for us to breathe," said Lynn Morris of Baton Rouge Green, one of the successful urban forestry programs featured in the documentary. Trees also have a major effect on the climate, especially our cities' microclimates. "When you cut down trees, you cut down green spaces and you put up parking lots and roadways, you end up increasing the temperature from five to ten degrees," maintains Georgia Tech University Professor William Chameides. Cities such as Sacramento, Milwaukee, and Austin have formed successful public-private coalitions to get new trees planted and educate people about the importance of preserving these vital resources. More cities around the nation are joining this movement each year. Rowan Rowntree, Urban Forest Ecology Researcher, USDA Forest Service: "It's important to see the city not as just a set of artificial buildings and impervious surfaces, but as having an infrastructure or a circulatory system weaved through it of live material. It's a vibrant renewable resource that unfortunately we take for granted as we walk through the city. But it's critical to life within the city. If we look at it as a rich tapestry of dynamic processes and interacting components. If we're going to just look at it as a set of street trees or as single elements, we're just not going to comprehend it." Program Transcript Production Credits

Funding for "The Forest Where We Live" was provided, in part, by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service in cooperation with the National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council.

 

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