If you aren't familiar with the area surrounding the Hands On Charlotte office here in Plaza Midwood, one of my favorite features of the area is a Lorax-inspired mural painted on the fence bordering Thomas Street Tavern. (Random fact, The Lorax and The Sneetches are my two favorite Dr. Seuss books.) Given this side of me, it really was only a matter of time until I took to this blog to broadcast the importance of plants and trees within emergency preparedness. While not necessarily directly related at first glance, planting trees and deep-rooted plants does a lot to help with urban and suburban flood prevention.
In this article, the EPA points out the benefits of what they call "beneficial landscaping." One of the facts that really stuck out to me was that a typical lawn has only ten percent the water absorption capacity of a natural woodland area. Many of the aesthetic benefits that come from traditional landscaping actually do very little and exacerbate urban and suburban flooding issues. The article has a great bulleted list of facts regarding what we can do to better preserve our planet and protect ourselves from flooding in a major metropolitan area. Please give it a read!
Further, I was informed by one of my coworkers here at Hands On Charlotte about a pretty nifty program that will actually provide tree seedlings at neighborhood events. If you're looking to host a neighborhood tree planting, or even volunteer at tree plantings in the Charlotte area, feel free to give their website a look via this link. I'll probably be joining some of these volunteer opportunities in the near future, so please join in!
If you have any questions or further information about what we can do to make a positive environmental impact and take proactive steps toward flood prevention here in Charlotte and beyond, please e-mail me at rob@handsoncharlotte.org. It's a cause I'll sign up for at the drop of a hat, and would love to get further involved with the environmental preservation community here in Charlotte.
Also, because I'll be attending tonight's Lotus show in Asheville (will I see any of you there?), and because this song is just too perfect not to post with this cause, enjoy, and stay safe y'all!
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