The highly-coveted trees that give The Woodlands both its namesake and its visual appeal are just now feeling the full affect of last year's drought, and The Woodlands Township is paying the price.
The township is spending $1.8 million on its drought response, essentially cutting down drought-ravaged trees that it had not originally budgeted for the project. According to township documents, $897,651 was initially budgeted in 2012 for tree removal, streetscape reforestation and expansion of the township's irrigation and expansion equipment.
The records state the "severe drought and its related effects upon the forest, ponds and parks have caused a substantial increase in the number of trees to die and water costs to increase."
Last year, the township removed 7,480 trees from parks, open spaces and along pathways—5,849 more than the 1,631 trees removed in 2010, a 458 percent increase. That number does not include trees removed by homeowners.
The township also uses outside sources for tree maintenance, which removed 1,948 trees in 2011 for a total of 9,428 trees removed from township property.
John Powers, assistant general manager of community services for the township, said the approach to tree removal and drought response is "multi-faceted" and involved several efforts and entities.
"First and foremost is hazardous tree removal, identifying the thousands of trees that pose a hazard and getting them removed," Powers said. "We don't know exactly how many trees are out there."
The township conducted "mortality estimates" based on data provided from local sources. Those estimates state that anywhere from 2 to 30 percent of all trees in The Woodlands could be dead due to the drought. According to township documents, "at an average of 250 trees per acre in Township open space reserves and having 1,916 acres of open space equates to 479,000 trees."
That figure puts the estimated number of dead trees in The Woodlands between 9,580 and 143,700.
However, the township could come to a more accurate number once it contracts with a forestry management company, which Powers said will be able to more accurately state how many trees may need to be removed.
"We will know within the next few months what our experts say," Powers said.
Township director Claude Hunter voted in favor of the expenditure, but believes high densities in trees could be dangerous.
"We've got to get [the dead trees] down before the fall and hurt somebody," Hunter said. "Nature has done us a favor. Nature will heal, it may not heal as fast as it we would like."
Despite the high number of potential lost trees, Powers said there were some positive signs.
"The great news is that we are way above average rain fall," he said. "If we had been below it again, it would have exacerbated everything. This rain that we've had has been a blessing."
But for now, The Woodlands residents should get used to seeing patches of bare land where trees used to stand.
"[Reforestation] will take some time, but that's the natural succession of the forest," Powers said. "It has done this ebb and flow forever. It will do it again. But we are going to help it along."
The township plans to implement reforestation in the fall and Powers encouraged residents to do their part, too.
"There are thousands that will grow back just naturally," he said. "But we would encourage people to be planting on their property and use effective watering."
