School of Architecture, State Key Laboratory of Subtropical Building Science, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, Guangdong, 510640, China.
College of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
Sci Total Environ. 2023 Dec 15;904:166728. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166728. Epub 2023 Sep 2.
Root damage from urban street trees represents a substantial concern arising from the conflict between root growth and limited growth spaces. Nonetheless, the phenomenon of root damage, which threatens the safety of urban facilities, appears to have received little scholarly attention. Moreover, the effectiveness of some proposed measures for root damage prevention and control has not yet received consistent evaluation. Accordingly, this review aims to examine root damage, including its causes and available prevention and control measures. Urban trees are found to have a high potential to exert root damage on infrastructures when the following factors exist. These include large and mature tree, fast-growing trees, trees planted in limited soil volumes, shallow-rooted tree with buttress roots, trees whose diameter at breast height exceeds 10 cm, old and cracked road paving, high soil surface moisture content, short distances between trees and sidewalks (<2 to 3 m), and underground pipes that are already broken and made of metals or stones. The phenotypic traits of trees may be the primary factor causing root damage when there is a mismatch between the root-soil requirements of urban street trees and the actual soil environment. The poor effectiveness of root damage prevention and control measures may be attributed to the lack of connection between the development of control measures and the mechanism of root damage.
城市街道树木的根系损伤是由于根系生长和有限的生长空间之间的冲突而引起的一个重大问题。然而，根系损伤现象对城市设施的安全构成威胁，这一问题似乎并未引起学术界的太多关注。此外，一些预防和控制根系损伤的建议措施的有效性尚未得到一致的评估。因此，本综述旨在探讨根系损伤问题，包括其原因和可用的预防和控制措施。当存在以下因素时，城市树木有可能对基础设施造成根系损伤：大型和成熟的树木、生长迅速的树木、种植在有限土壤体积中的树木、具有板根的浅根系树木、胸径超过 10 厘米的树木、老旧和开裂的道路铺面、高土壤表面含水量、树木与人行道之间的短距离（<2 至 3 米）以及已经损坏且由金属或石头制成的地下管道。当城市街道树木的根系-土壤需求与实际土壤环境不匹配时，树木的表型特征可能是导致根系损伤的主要因素。根系损伤预防和控制措施效果不佳的原因可能是控制措施的发展与根系损伤机制之间缺乏联系。
