The legislature finds and declares that:
1. It is the purpose of this title to promote a comprehensive urban
forestry program to assure positive benefit from urban trees planned and
managed with adequate recognition of the physical, biotic and social
surroundings in which they are encouraged to grow and provide their
benefits.
2. Trees can serve as a vital link between man in the urban setting
and his environment, if properly planned and managed.
3. Trees and shrubs can improve the quality of urban environments by
helping to prevent erosion, by providing shade, modifying extremes of
temperature and humidity, helping to reduce noise and air pollution, and
enhancing the aesthetic quality of life. Also, vegetation in urban green
space can contribute to urban water shed management and provide habitats
for desirable urban wildlife.
4. Growing conditions in urban areas for trees and associated plants
are frequent and recurrent problems because of highway and street
widening, sidewalk reconstruction, air pollution, modified drainage,
erosion, soil fertility depletion, insects and disease, mechanical
hazards and other adverse influences resulting from concentrated use of
land. On the other hand, many mature urban areas have large tracts of
open space on which more urban vegetation could be grown.
5. Improved and expanded urban tree programs for planting and
maintenance of trees and associated vegetation in urban areas would help
make urban areas more pleasant and healthful places to live, work and
visit; and
6. Trees are an important economic asset and resource to urban areas
by increasing land values and by modifying extremes of temperature,
humidity and winds and thereby have an important role in reducing the
amount of energy consumed in heating and cooling many urban buildings
and homes.