Trees fulfill many important tasks for us:
- Improving air quality by filtering dust and gaseous pollutants
- Improvement of the microclimate through temperature equalization during hot periods
- Reduction of noise perceptions
- Increasing people's identification with their living environment
- Water storage
- Habitat and food source for animals
- Binding of CO2 and production of oxygen
- Design enhancement of streets, squares and residential areas
- Improving the quality of stay
Due to the great importance of trees for our quality of life, particularly with regard to their effect on the urban climate, the focus is on creating new street tree locations and on replanting and, in some cases, enlarging existing open locations.
Many open tree grates no longer meet the current requirements for an inner-city tree location. They are often too small and, above all, there is a lack of suitable soil below ground that can be well rooted. Urban trees, and street trees in particular, are sometimes exposed to extreme conditions such as soil compaction and sealing, increased temperatures, drought, air and soil pollutants, road salt, artificial light and much more, which is why they barely reach half of their potential lifespan. The effects of climate change are further worsening the site conditions of our urban greenery.
Great efforts are therefore being made to provide our urban trees with the best possible living conditions. Above all, this includes a sufficiently large root area with a special substrate that is particularly permeable to air and can store water and nutrients well. More replanting is being carried out on existing but empty sites. However, the focus is also on creating new tree locations: when redesigning streets and squares or in the course of pipeline construction measures. In urban areas that are particularly exposed to climatic stress, new tree locations are also created independently of such construction projects.