Abstract

Urban trees contribute to environment through their biological and amenity functions, and are an economic and social value for cities, as well as a sustainability value. However, their value in monetary terms is difficult to quantify, it is given mainly by formulas, being a practice adopted in several cities. The objective of this study was to compare seven formulas used in ten municipalities of Chile (seven communes of the great Santiago: La Florida, La Pintana, Maipti, Nuftoa, Peenlolen, Renca and Vitacura; and three cities: Antofagasta, ConcepciOn and Talca), besides the formula of Council of Tree Landscape Appraiser (CTLA) USA. The formulas were applied to two trees of 14 species selected in different urban contexts in Talca, determining the differences and similarities of the monetary results of the appraisal. For the statistical analysis the ICruskal-Wallis nonparametric variance test and the Fisher's least significant difference (LSD) test were used. The results show a wide dispersion of monetary values obtained by formula and per specie, with statistically significant differences in both cases. Only the formula of the municipalities Concepcion, La Pintana and Maipti (COPIMA) has a similar performance to that of CTLA regarding the dispersion of the values obtained. The results are consistent with international studies that suggest the use of formulas to assess the urban trees, especially when including variables such as location, condition and amenities of the tree, as compared to those formulas of capitalization or those that are oriented only to assess damage. For Chile, the best formula recommended was that of COPIMA.