Southern Research Station Headquarters - Asheville, NC
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Issue 14
Making the Shade in Georgia
by Zoë Hoyle
Before the invention of air conditioning, shade trees were an absolute necessity for living through the heat of a southern summer. Into the 1960s, old shade trees often surrounded school playgrounds, but as new schools were built across the South to accommodate growing populations, these veteran trees were cut down, victims of cost-effective construction practices and safety concerns. Today, many southern schoolyards literally bake in sun.
In late spring and summer in the South, surfaces of schoolyards and playground equipment can get hot enough to literally burn skin. “Surface temperatures on playground equipment can easily reach anywhere from 120 to 140 °F, which can burn a child’s skin in only 3 seconds,” says Larry Morris, who manages the Sustainable Community Forestry Program (SCFP) for the Georgia Forestry Commission. “In addition, a child’s skin can become overexposed to the sun’s ultraviolet radiation in only 15 minutes out in the open, which can lead to sun damage and ultimately to skin cancer.”
Air quality is another concern. Ground-level ozone, an air pollutant, is the result of a series of complex chemical interactions that increase in the spring and summer when there is more sunlight and temperatures are higher. Ground-level ozone levels are often at their peaks during midday when children are outside for recess.
“The pollution children inhale can lead to lung-related problems such as asthma,” says Morris. “Reestablishing shade on playgrounds can help reduce respiratory-related illnesses by lowering ground-level temperatures and sun exposure.”
Morris is one of the architects of Making the Shade, a program designed specifically to improve the health of school children by strategically planting shade trees on school playground areas across Georgia. In 2005, in cooperation with the Forest Service, SCFP created Making the Shade as a pilot program; since its beginning, 14 elementary schools across the state have started programs to reestablish shade on playgrounds, with 6 more locations scheduled for this year. More than 500 shade trees have been planted, and more than 8,825 students impacted.
Each year, SCFP sends out requests for proposals for grants of up to $10,000 to elementary schools and associated groups interested in starting Making the Shade programs. To participate, schools must have strong local partnerships with a tree board or nonprofit, a volunteer landscape architect, a nursery, and a city/county representative. Applicants must also match the grant dollar for dollar through a corporate sponsor or monetary match, have a maintenance plan in place, and secure the participation of the local SCFP forester and county ranger.
SCFP foresters coordinate individual projects with the local school board and school system officials, parent-teacher groups, tree suppliers, and volunteers. Assistance includes developing planting plans; selecting and scheduling shipment of trees, mulch, and other materials; and onsite planting with volunteers. SCFP foresters also use classroom lessons to increase student awareness of the important roles trees play in their lives.
“Our goal is not just to increase trees on elementary school playgrounds today, but to influence future planning towards the proper placement of trees for healthy shade rather than just landscaping for aesthetics,” says Morris. “The proper placement of trees can help reduce surface temperatures by 30 degrees and block 80 percent of the ultraviolet rays that cause skin cancer.”
Making the Shade receives funding from the Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Grant Assistance Program and from Milliken & Company, a textile and chemical manufacturing company with a design center located in LaGrange, GA. Milliken & Company provides funding to selected schools in communities where there are Milliken facilities.
For more information:
Larry Morris at 706–542–6880 or lmorris@gfc.state.ga.us
Sustainable Community Forestry Program: www.gfc.state.ga.us/
CommunityForests/SustainableCommunity.cfm Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry: www.fs.fed.us/ucf/
