Trees can be the hero of flood prevention »Yale's climate link

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During the downpour, rainwater can clean the soil in people's yards and gardens and carve small gulls. It can overwhelm the storm system, flooding urban roads and sidewalks.

But for towns, there is an easy way to reduce flood risk – planting trees.

A tree's leaves and branches caught some rain when it rained, thus hitting the ground. And the dripping thing will fall more gently, rather than slamming into the soil and causing erosion.

Under the trees, the fallen leaves and vegetation also captured some water, so they rushed into the rain at once.

The roots of a tree can also help. By sewing into the soil, the roots of the trees inflate the soil, allowing more water to soak underground rather than build up on the ground. By fixing the soil around, the roots help reduce erosion during storms.

Research by the Center for Nonprofit Climate estimates that trees help prevent nearly 400 billion gallons of runoff each year across the United States.

With the warmer climate, heavy downpours have become increasingly common in many parts of the country, so the power of tree prevention is becoming increasingly important.

Report credit: Ethan Freedman/Chavobart Digital Media