Dallas Park and Recreation has an army of forestry workers clearing out trees knocked down by the severe storms that blew through Dallas on June 9.
Tree loss estimates from Park and Recreation officials are over 700, and many more trees suffered significant damage and blocked power lines, roads, playgrounds, trails and other city park public areas.
Willis C. Winters, park department director, announced in a release that the extent of the damage was still being cataloged. Winters referred to the damage as “unprecedented,” and estimates that clearing the debris and damaged trees will take crews weeks or even months.
Crews are clearing rubble, branches and tree limbs manually and putting those that are small enough through industrial chippers, with the resulting mulch to be used in the city’s parks. Trees and branches too large for the chippers are sent to the city landfill.
Estimates put the number of new trees that will be needed to replace those lost to be about 5,200. With the help of volunteers, the Dallas Park and Recreation plans to begin reforestation efforts this fall. Included in the lost trees were some with trunks as big as 60 inches across.
Attracting volunteers is often most effectively accomplished via the use of flyer and poster printing
Director Winters is approaching Dallas corporations and businesses to partner with the Parks Department to help pay the high cost of replacing trees and the after-care maintenance they will need.
