By Norman Bezona Special to West Hawaii Today
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This year West Hawaii has begun with less precipitation than we need to keep our landscapes healthy, so we again are aware of the importance to have well distributed rainfall. Planting shade trees in along streets and parking lots can reduce temperatures by twenty to thirty degrees. Urbanization without sufficient landscaping is impacting Kona and Hilo, but Puna, Kohala and other population areas are also seeing a trend toward removing trees.