Community Services

STEVE HOUSER & BILL SEAMAN

The Dallas City Council will vote on proposed revisions to the tree preservation ordinance this month.

The revisions to the 1993 ordinance were drafted by the Zoning Ordinance Advisory Committee and submitted to the Plan Commission for review and approval. After thorough study and debate and some additional strengthening based on almost 10 years of practical application, the commission unanimously approved the draft and forwarded it to the council. It now is up to the full council to make the revisions law.

Why is the tree preservation ordinance important? Simply stated, the health and prosperity of Dallas are at stake.

With each ozone alert day, the importance of trees becomes more apparent. Plus, ongoing scientific research on how we as a community benefit from a healthy urban forest is developing quantifiable data with a dollar value. That value goes way beyond the obvious aesthetic benefit.

Since coal-fired power plants are a major source of pollutants, reducing electrical consumption can improve air quality A recent study of energy use in Ocala, Fla., and Gainesville, Fla, found that although the cities were similar, Gainesville was spending an average of $126 less in energy costs per household annually. The difference was directly attributable to a strict tree ordinance in Gainesville that encourages tree preservation. .According to the Energy Department, proper tree placement in a residential landscape can cut energy costs by 25 percent to 50 percent.

Research also is showing that the greatest benefit from our urban forests may be from improving air quality. Trees are natural air filters, trapping airborne particulate matter, producing oxygen and capturing carbon dioxide.

A study by the Environmental Protection Agency In Chicago showed a 23.2 percent tree canopy cover in a Lincoln Park neighborhood annually filtered 43.9 tons of particulate matter, 14 tons of carbon dioxide and 12.4 tons of nitrogen oxides.

According to the Forest 5ervice, a large city tree removes 90 times as much carbon as a small one; therefore, the preservation of larger trees is critical – a good reason to protect all of the existing trees in the Great Trinity Forest here in Dallas. For every ton of wood an urban forest grows, it removes 1.47 tons of carbon dioxide and replaces it with 1.07 tons of oxygen.

Trees have the ability to modify our climate, reducing temperature through shade and evapo-transpiration. That is why Oak Cliff can be 13 degrees cooler than Addison on a summer day. Lower temperatures reduce the formation of ozone and maintain air quality.

Planting trees helps meet long term environmental goals, while preserving trees helps meet short- term goals. By preserving our urban forest, we won’t have to hold our collective breath for 20 years as new tree plantings mature.

Contact the mayor and your City Council member and ask them to support a stronger tree preservation ordinance that values and protects our urban forest.

Steve Houser is the past president of the Dallas Historic Tree Coalition. Bill Seaman is the current President.

KEVIN BASSETT

Kevin Bassett, prominent local arborist for Over 15 years. has received the coveted “Arborist of the Year’ award from the International Society of Arboriculture, Texas Chapter. Kevin is a plant pathologist and vice president of Arborilogical Services, Inc., a local area tree care company. He is a resident of Richardson and has earned this award by donating his time to the Texas Chapter of the I.S.A., as well as his personal achievements. He has been instrumental in planning and running the Texas Chapter I.S.A. Jamboree.. (The Jamboree is a yearly event for tree climbers who compete against each other for the state championship). Kevin himself was third place champion in the Texas State Jamboree in 1983 and placed 14th in the world in the International Jamboree that same year. Kevin has been on the board of directors for the Texas Chapter I.S.A. for the past few years.

Bassett has a bachelors degree in plant pathology from Colorado State University and he is an I.S.A. certified Arborist. He is also responsible for the certification of some of the other Texas arborists through the I.S.A.’s certification program.

High Profile: Steve Houser besides being a respected arborist, he may be the best friend a threatened tree ever had,

01/20/2002

Have you hugged a tree today?

Subject: Master Naturalist Summary records

Hi Steve!

I hope you will mark your calendar to be with us!

This email message refers to 2500 hours of volunteer service to the North Texas Master Naturalist program. Those are hours of teaching you and me and our children the basics of taking care of our trees with his special flair for letting us know how special we and our trees really are. That is just one of MANY volunteer programs and services to which Mr. Houser graciously donates his talents and his time serving the public and our community.

The International Oak Society works to further the study, sustainable management, preservation, appreciation, and dissemination of knowledge to the public about oaks and their ecosystems.

During the conference, members enjoyed a welcome dinner on October 29^th as well as two days of top notch speakers covering oak related subjects, including the Texas Tree Trail. They also enjoyed a van trip through Texas to view a vast array of oaks species across the state led by Texas Forest Service Representatives, Mr. Courtney Blevins and Mr. Matt Grubisich.

Arborilogical Services supports this type of effort due to the education provided and the positive light that this event casts on the Dallas area as people who care about trees.

Selecting the best quality trees for specific locations and planting properly are considered two vital components in their long term health, beauty, and usefulness while reducing maintenance costs in home, municipal and commercial landscapes including insect and disease problems. Forester/Arborist Bryan White will provide lessons and how this may be accomplished.

1 – 2:15pm, Trees: Selection and Planting, Bryan White, Forester, (ISA) International Society of Arboriculture Certified Arborist 

An Earth Day celebration is not complete without the trees. Members of several groups, including the Dallas Historic Tree Coalition, the Dallas Parks Department, the Texas Trees Foundation and the Urban Forest Advisory Committee, will answer questions.

Steve Houser, chair of the Urban Forest Advisory Committee, which advises the city of Dallas on trees and urban forest issues (including diagnosis of disease), says two initiatives are getting under way in conjunction with Earth Day.

The first is a donation program to support planting trees in Dallas.

"Dallas is the seventh-largest city in the country and there has not been a citywide effort to plant trees," says Mr. Houser, owner of Arborilogical Services.

• TDA Commercial Pesticide Applicator #286220
• TCEQ Licensed Irrigator #13464
• TCE/TAMU Licensed Irrigation Auditor - March 2006

CERTIFICATIONS

• Texas Public Information Act Certification – Sept 2006
• Vista Professional Outdoor Lighting Design and Installation - May 2005
• Texas Master Naturalist 2004
• EPA Worker Protection Pesticide Handler #H0258830 - January 1995
• TDA Agricultural Hazard Communication Training - October 1993
• Texas Association of Nurserymen Certified Nursery Professional - August 1993

AWARDS

• City of Garland Volunteer Service Award for Spring Creek Forest Preserve March 2005 Workday
• City of Garland Storm Water Smartscape Winner July 2004
• Classical Magnet School Award for Service May 2003
• Heritage Herb Club – 2002 College Scholarship winner
• Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Award for Texas Wildscapes Backyard Wildlife Habitat - December 1996

SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS

• “The Benefits of Trees” to City of Garland, Arbor Day, April 25, 2008
• “Nice Things Trees Do for Us” Dallas County Farm Days April 2005
• “Birds, Bugs, and Blooms” to Heritage Herb Club of Plano -October 2002
• “Herb Propagation Techniques” Texas Herb Growers and Marketers Association Ninth Annual Conference 1995 Dallas, TX

CURRICULA DEVELOPMENT

• ‘Birds, Bugs and Blooms” 1st -8th grade TEKS Applications, Richardson Independent School District - February 2003 – I wrote the entire curriculum for this after-school program.
• “Practical Applications for Utilizing the Hortus Magicus Garden” to Classical Magnet School, Richardson Independent School District September 2002 This was an application of the above curricula for RISD as presented on September 28, 2002
• “Plant Species in the Hortus Magicus” Classical Magnet School, RISD, December 2002

PUBLICATIONS

• Texas Turfgrass Research, 1999, "Agricultural Programs of the Texas A&M University System"; Texas A&M University Research & Extension Center at Dallas; Technical Administrative Assistant –Turfgrass Breeding.
• Sloan, J.J. M.C. Engelke, and Laura McLarry. 2002. "Effect of Ozonated and Oxygenated Water on Turf Growth and Root Zone Chemistry"; Agronomy Abstracts. ASA. Madison, WI.