Trees Bring $2M Benefit To Prospect Park: Survey

PROSPECT HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — The landscape trees dotting Prospect Park's paths provide more just than a getaway for nature-starved New Yorkers.

A newly-finished tree survey found those 15,698 woody friends provide more than $2 million in environmental benefits, according to park officials.

Those benefits include more than 3 million pounds of carbon dioxide that didn't escape into the atmosphere, 22 million gallons of water saved and 20,000 pounds of pollutants saved from the air, according an interactive map.

The Prospect Park Alliance completed the survey with help from a $75,000 Urban Forestry Grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, a release states. Davey Resource Group conducted the survey for the alliance.

The map allows visitors to identify individual trees, their size and individual financial impact. A One pin oak tree in Prospect Park West provides about $365 of eco benefits a year, according to the map.

The survey only covered trees in the park's landscaped areas. The park has 30,000 trees total if the woodland trees outside the survey's scope are included, officials said.

There might not be a price tag on the park's natural beauty, but the survey shows its trees can also have a tangible economic impact.

More information can be found at the park's TreeKeeper Database page.