Much of the Arizona Canal running through metro Phoenix is a barren stretch of pavement and gravel paths, but for a few trees and shrubs — that is until you reach a stretch in north central Phoenix where huge eucalyptus trees line the banks.
But why are they there? The answer dates back about 100 years.
It’s just before 7 a.m. in Phoenix in mid-June, and it’s already hot.
Brian Moorhead, an environmental scientist with Salt River Project, takes refuge under one of the large eucalyptus trees hugging the canal bank.
The trees are magnificent and create a cooling canopy.
"This is an area that has been maintained with these trees, but it's unique because we don't have the trees growing on the canal bank in other locations," said Moorhead.
That’s because these eucalyptus consume a lot of water. They were planted in the 1920s when the area was covered in citrus groves.
A nearby sign says the trees provide a glimpse of what the canals were like when the Valley was mostly farmland.
SRP now maintains the trees. But it means making modifications. This section of bank, for example, is not lined with concrete. Instead, tree roots poke out of the dirt.
"We didn't line that because it would have cut off some of the access to the tree root access to the water, which may have been detrimental to the trees," Moorhead said.
Moorhead says SRP has no plans to remove the trees. Time will eventually take care of that.
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