How Are Forests Important?
Chesapeake Bay forests perform crucial functions that benefit all plants and animals — including humans — such as filtering pollution, creating habitat and providing shade. Forests Protect Clean Water Forests are one of the most beneficial land uses for improving and maintaining clean water. Similar to wetlands, forests act as giant sponges that absorb and slowly release pollutants such as nutrients and sediment from stormwater runoff. Trees also remove nitrogen from the air. • Forests store, clean and slowly release about two-thirds of the water that maintains stream flow and replenishes groundwater. • Air pollutants that fall onto forested areas are absorbed into the ground. Pollutants that are not filtered out slowly make their way into local waterways. • Riparian forests that buffer streams significantly reduce the amount of excess nitrogen and phosphorus that enters a water body, sometimes by as much as 30 to 90 percent. Forests currently buffer about 60 percent of the streams and
