CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) — Charlottesville Department of Utilities customers will have the opportunity to receive one of 200 free trees to plant on their property as part of the Arbor Day Foundation’s Energy-Saving Trees Program.
The trees will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis, and can be reserved using the Department of Utilities’ interactive tree portal, provided by the Arbor Day Foundation, beginning on Monday. Each service address will be limited to one tree, and customers can choose between four varieties; witchhazel, black haw viburnum, black cherry and tuliptree.
“The idea is as the trees grow, that they’ll provide cooling shade in the warm months, and they’ll provide blocking, the ability to block cold winds in the winter months,” Utilities Outreach Program Coordinator Ryan Willis told Cville Right Now, “and all that should help translate to a more comfortable home and lower energy costs. But it also has a lot of fringe benefits that benefit the broader community.”…