Abstract
This manuscript summarizes the process by which large trees are protected in Poland, how they gain protected status, and the use of acoustic tomography to assess the structural soundness of five individual trees. The authors discuss tree stressors and tree care options, and how the outcome of each assessment was used in the decision-making process. Moreover, the use of acoustic tomography as an assessment tool helps to gain public acceptance for the assessment. In sustainable development, there is talk of the conscious management of urban vegetation, and specifically tree populations in the city. In line with sustainable development, actions are taken to manage the existing natural resources, e.g., historic trees, properly. Thanks to using an acoustic tomograph, it is possible to diagnose old tree specimens, take care of the safety of people and property near the natural monument, and to test candidates for their eligibility as monuments. Thanks to the research presented, it was ordered that one poplar tree be left and observed in Lublin, that two linden trees be cut down in Sandomierz and Lublin, that arborist works consisting of lowering the height of a linden tree in Sandomierz be undertaken, and that monument protection be applied for an ash tree in Łęczna. A visual tree assessment (VTA) was the starting point for this research. Each of the trees could endanger the safety of site users, and the diagnostics performed using sound waves were crucial in assessing their health condition. Our results highlight that acoustic tomography is an essential diagnostic method applicable to trees belonging to cultural heritage, such as old trees, and is effective in preventive tree management through the monitoring of mid- to long-term changes in internal decay or cavities that are difficult to diagnose with the naked eye.
Highlights
It is optimal for a city’s development to obtain economic and ecological benefits at the same time
In the annex to the regulation, we found the minimum circumference of trunks for individual types and species of trees including, e.g., ash trees at 250 cm, linden trees at
Visual tree assessment (VTA) is still the starting point for such studies [32,33,34]; the internal defects of tree trunks often remain beyond the sight of an arborist or a botanist [35]
Summary
It is optimal for a city’s development to obtain economic and ecological benefits at the same time. Finding a balance between the social, ecological, and economic aspects is one of the biggest challenges in sustainable city management [1]. Shaping properly functioning urban green areas with large, historic trees preserved to enrich the urbanized environment may be one way to build this balance. There is a need to properly shape and protect the urban landscape in order to create an image of the city as more friendly and harmonious [2,3,4]. Green areas in the city fulfill various natural (e.g., climatic, hydrological, biological) and non-natural functions (e.g., social, recreational, aesthetic). Among others: parks, squares, the street landscape and city forests.
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