A partnership between the city of Chattanooga and Reflection Riding Arboretum and Nature Center will continue to provide free trees to area residents.
The Chattanooga City Council passed a measure Tuesday evening providing $20,000 in funding for the Growing Resilient Neighborhoods program through the end of the year.
Trees can help drive down residents’ air-conditioning costs and increase property values, said Mark McKnight, president and CEO of Reflection Riding.
The trees also play a crucial role in reducing the burden placed on engineered stormwater systems. The program has distributed 1,000 trees so far, and McKnight estimates those trees have kept 7,600 gallons of water from entering the city’s stormwater system.
“You can literally have smaller stormwater pipes if you have more green infrastructure doing the work for you,” McKnight said in a phone call with the Chattanooga Times Free Press.