Highways England give cash value to roadside trees

摘要

Highways England are aiming to improve their decision making capabilities around which species to plant and retain together and which age groups give the most benefits. Utilising the United States Forest Service's i-Tree software, Kier and partners have been able to demonstrate through a pilot how assigning a monetary value could further support and protect them. The pilot involved surveying trees in the Devon and Cornwall soft-estate area, where Kier manages on behalf of Highways England, and inputting the data into i-Tree. The software, which is based on peer-reviewed research, quantifies the structure and determines the benefits delivered by the trees including value to communities, pollution removal, carbon sequestration and storm water management. From this, it is possible to calculate how much the benefits are worth in monetary value, emphasising the importance of the trees which can be used to influence future decisions around road schemes and replanting/maintaining the stock. The monetary value works in effect by ascribing the trees an asset value: For example, the trees are estimated to provide benefits to local communities worth a combined £40 million in Devon and Cornwall, taking into account the health of trees, their attributes and prominence in the landscape.