NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — As the city still recovers from several flash floods and rains over the past week, one community group is looking to the future.
Jim Gregory with the Nashville Tree conservation Corps says a new bill signed into law by Mayor John Cooper this week could help prevent some future flooding.
The bill would require developers to install new trees to replace ones they remove when building certain developments.
Gregory says he’s seen how tree removal has made neighborhood flash flooding issues worse.
"When you remove these large trees that are absorbing thousands of gallons of water in our neighborhood, and then expand the building footprint to create more impervious services, we are going to have flooding issues," Gregory said.
He says just 50 large trees can absorb 100,000 gallons of water each year.
Gregory says he hopes the new law will help keep the balance between development and conservation.
