The Role of Trees in Urban Stormwater Management

Arboriculture deserves additional consideration as a stormwater control measure. The reliable use of trees for stormwater control depends on improved understanding of how and to what extent trees interact with stormwater, and the context-specific consideration of optimal arboricultural practices and institutional frameworks to maximize the stormwater benefits trees can provide.

In this article, we draw on existing research to describe how trees can provide alternative pathways for urban stormwater via a broader range of losses from the urban hydrologic cycle, and note opportunities to pair trees with other green infrastructure technologies. We then discuss the outlook for using trees as elements of green infrastructure to achieve reliable stormwater control, and conclude by identifying challenges and research gaps related to quantifying the performance of trees as stormwater control measures and ensuring growth and longevity of urban trees. [Introduction]