Planting the seeds for a greener tomorrow
Local activities lined up to celebrate Arbor Day
BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer

North Brunswick

NORTH BRUNSWICK - One, two, tree.

In celebration of Arbor Day, which is Friday, the township is holding several events to protect and encourage the environment in and around the township.

Linwood Middle School received 25 free tree seedlings from the New Jersey Tree Foundation based on a written proposal by the school on beautifying the school courtyards. The Environmental Club and Beautification Committee will plant the trees on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. to commemorate both Arbor Day and Make a Difference Day.

The North Brunswick Woman's Club will clean Finnegans Lane as part of the Adopt-a-Road program on Saturday starting at 8:30 a.m., beginning at Tulip Lane. They perform this service twice a year, both in the spring and fall. They will also be planting flowers at the Ronald McDonald House on Somerset Street in New Brunswick on May 5 at 8:30 a.m.

In addition, the township's Environmental Commission is urging residents to protect all trees in town, which provide habitats for birds and other animals, contribute a significant amount of oxygen to the atmosphere, prevent soil erosion, protect aquatic life from sediment buildup, decrease flooding and provide beautiful scenery.

"Trees are among the hardest working natural resources in our community," said commission Chairman Mark Hommer.

The leafy crowns of trees break the impact of falling rain so that water has time to evaporate or drip gradually onto soil instead of racing to the nearest storm sewer. Trees also scrub ozone, sulfur dioxide and other pollutants from the air and help absorb toxins through phytoremediation, Hommer said.

According to the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions, construction sites have been shown to produce as much as 250 times the normal amount of soil erosion when builders clear-cut all the trees and bulldoze the entire lot instead of leaving trees standing and reducing the amount of soil disturbance. Trees can also help fight global warming. Large trees on the south, east and west sides of a house can reduce energy use for air conditioning, cutting summer electricity usage by five to 10 percent. In the winter, deciduous trees drop their leaves so that the sun's rays help warm the house, reducing heating fuel consumption.

"As a result, trees help reduce a household's carbon footprint all year long," Hommer said.

The environmentalist also recognizes the township's proactive role in protecting trees, especially with the enactment of an ordinance that discourages unnecessary tree removal on public and private property and which requires the replacement of trees that are damaged or destroyed during construction.

Protecting existing trees can be as simple as watering trees during drought periods, at least five to 10 gallons a week during the summer and more for newly planted trees, according to Jay Kaplan, a member of the Environmental Commission and a certified arborist. He also advised keeping tree mulch away from tree bark to increase its life span.

"In North Brunswick we appreciate our trees," Hommer said.