The photographs tell the tale. Old pictures from Durango’s early days show a sparse town with few trees and a bleak, almost industrial landscape. Some of that reflects improvements in photography, of course, but more reflect improvements made over time to and by the town.
Much of that can be credited to forward-looking members of the Durango city council and the city managers they have hired; there is plenty of credit to go around. But the first name that comes up in any discussion of Durango and trees is Ron Stoner, the city’s first arborist.
Stoner, who retired Friday, has been called the “go-to person for anything tree-related” since 1984. He was ired after then-City Manager Bob Ledger and then-Parks and Recreation Director Roger “Roskow” Roskowinski decided that the city needed to assume responsibility for taking care of all the trees in the city’s greenbelts and rights-of-way.
What followed was an official recognition, careful maintenance and expansion of the city’s “urban forest.” And with that the number of trees in the city has expanded under his tenure from roughly 2,000 to almost 9,000.
That is a lot of trees. And Durango is demonstrably the better for their addition. Trees add a great dean of beauty to town. Beyond that, as Stoner told the Herald, “They store carbon, clean oxygen, provide cooling shade in the summer and serve as wind breaks to preserve heat in the winter. Trees help with storm water mitigation and store millions of gallons in the canopy.”
Stoner also has led a number of other efforts on behalf of trees and Durango. He battled invasive species, insects and diseases to protect native trees – particularly American elms – and to fight off noxious plants such as Russian olive and tamarisk from around the river.
He helped start the Peter Carver Memorial Forest above Chapman Hill to honor the 23-year-old Durangoan killed in an avalanche two years ago.
Stoner also created a citywide Community Forest Management Plan. And he lined up a cost-share program whereby the city will pay half the cost of the tree, plants it, then covers ongoing maintenance if the homeowner will pay half the up-front cost.
Stoner is not solely responsible for Durango’s urban forest. He had help from far-sighted officials, supportive taxpayers and a business community that saw the long-term value of beauty and health. But he had the vision, he led the charge and more than anyone deserves credit for its success.
He deserves our thanks.
