Forests and natural areas are our communities’ best defense against water pollution and the climate crisis. Trees sequester carbon, cool temperatures, reduce flooding, and protect our rivers, lakes, and drinking water sources from polluted runoff. Locally, forests are the most important landscape to conserve for the health of the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay. But in the greater Baltimore-Washington, D.C. metro area, and in every other urban center around the world, our greatest environmental asset is also the one most often discarded.
