Oregon Has 4th Worst Rate of Urban Canopy Loss in US

Of the 50 states that noted tree researchers studied to gauge urban area canopy loss between 2009 and 2014, Oregon ranked as having the fourth worst rate of loss behind only Oklahoma, Washington D.C., and Rhode Island. The study found that over those five years, Oregon lost 3,450 acres, or 0.38 percent, of its urban tree cover. Across states that lost urban tree cover, researchers found a gain in impervious cover, which can include new roads, buildings, and sidewalks. In Oregon, impervious urban surfaces increased by 2,070 acres. The study period covers the first years of the Great Recession, when development greatly slowed in Oregon. It has since accelerated, so the rate of loss may be even higher than that in the period studied. For the full study, see https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/55941