‘Trees help in temperature reduction, pollutants’
Planting of trees can help in reduction of temperature and other pollutants, stated Harini Nagendra of environment research institute, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment (ATREE).
Presenting a paper on `Biodiversity of street trees in Bangalore’ on Saturday, Nagendra said that she conducted a study between July and August last year on ten roads spread across the City and compared stretches on them which had trees and those which did not have them.
“The temperature in roads with trees showed a reduction by 20% and the Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) level was only one-fourth of the level present in stretches with trees when compared with portions without them,” she said.
Canopy trees
To provide infrastructure, old trees on broad roads were being chopped off but the trees replacing them were of different varieties. “In place of Raintree, spathodea and Hange, small canopy trees were coming up,” she regretted.
Rohan of ATREE presented a paper on `Urban commons: a case study of Agara lake’. The major finding of the study was that the Agara lake (Located near HBR Layout) was used for both livelihood and recreational purposes whereas lakes like Ulsoor or Sankey lake were used only for entertainment, he added.
