By TIM FAULKNER/ecoRI.org News staff
There’s
no shortage of stats associated with last summer's tropical storm Irene. Some
points are worth noting, however, especially when comparing the damage
inflicted on two New England states.
Rhode Island
• Top wind gusts: 83 mph.
• Rainfall: 5.3 inches.
• Top wind gusts: 83 mph.
• Rainfall: 5.3 inches.
Trees suffered the brunt of the storm. It was hard to
tally the exact damage. An estimated 14 percent of the trees in Warwick were
uprooted or harmed.
Tropical storm Irene caused Rhode Island
considerable damage last summer, including these trees on Providence's East Side. (ecoRI News file photo) |
The destruction was likely worse in Providence and Bristol
counties, which endured the strongest winds. Local tree experts say younger,
fast growing trees, such as Norway maples, were most susceptible. Most were in
need of pruning and largely neglected, causing them to grow irregularly and
become prone to breakage.
John Stanturf, a senior scientist with the U.S. Forest
Service in Atlanta, said Rhode Island trees likely suffered significant wind
and water damage because Irene pushed directly up the mouth of Narragansett
Bay. Trees along roads and open fields and other exposed areas suffered the
most.
Thanks to climate change, the impact of hurricanes and
other coastal storms will be more frequent and cause additional inland damage,
according to Stanturf. “It’s something people have to realize," he
said. "It’s not just people on the coast who have to deal with the effects
of the storms.”
Vermont
• Top wind gusts: 51 mph.
• Rainfall: 11.2 inches.
• Top wind gusts: 51 mph.
• Rainfall: 11.2 inches.
Time will tell if Irene was the lone hundred-year storm
in Vermont. But the weather has gotten pretty strange in the Evergreen State.
Irene hovered over the state for an entire day, dumping more than twice the
amount of rain than Rhode Island endured. Overflowing streams and rivers
flooded homes, roads and bridges, and even washed cemeteries from the ground.
As bad as the damage was, David Kittredge, professor of
forestry at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, said the catastrophe could
have caused considerably more harm. Ironically, some foresight by Congress in
1911 probably helped prevent much of the land from washing away. The Weeks Act,
in response to bad logging practices, created the White Mountain National
Forest in New Hampshire and the Green Mountain National Forest in Vermont. The
land was protected so that trees could absorb water and reduce flooding
downstream from a storm that hit 100 years later.
“The damage would have been much, much worse if those
hillsides were not covered by forest,” Kittredge said.
Intense weather events, such as tropical storm Irene,
Kittredge said, will be more common because of climate change. “We’re going to
be glad we had forests in place to moderate the effects of (climate
change)," he said.
Tree management
Experts suggest hiring arborists to prune and “thin the sail” in trees.
Experts suggest hiring arborists to prune and “thin the sail” in trees.
“The struggle is when trees that are not cared for
correctly could be a nuisance, but followed correctly you might find that it
will help your property in a storm,” said Frank Mastrobuono, coordinator
for the Rhode Island Urban and Community Forestry Program.
In the months since Irene hit Rhode Island, National Grid
has dramatically increased efforts to clear trees from power lines. It expects
to spend another $16 million on “vegetation management” this year and next.
Trees cover 60 percent of Rhode Island and are vital as
buffer zones to protect important natural areas such as reservoirs and
wetlands. When cared for, trees, especially those in residential areas, have
several benefits such as providing shade and providing a buffer against
property damage and flooding.
”Trees
can save money instead of cost money," Mastrobuono said.