Trees play a critical role in the quality of urban life, reducing the urban heat island effect, mitigating air pollution and helping to manage stormwater. Currently, the NYC tree canopy includes more than 7 million individual trees…but we need even more.
At the end of 2023, NYC passed Local Law 148 to expand the city’s tree canopy from 23% to 30% of city land. The Urban Forest Plan is being designed to make sure that trees are added in a way that serves all residents of the city, since some neighborhoods have many kore trees than others.
When the East Side Coastal Resiliency Project began in 2020, Stuy Cove Park’s mature trees unfortunately couldn’t be saved. And while the new trees are doing their best to grow up, these things take some time. Nevertheless, Stuy Cove has been working with the team at Forest for All to help promote a larger, healthier tree canopy across the city. Everyone can play a role in helping to develop the Urban Forest Plan, either by providing input through this questionnaire, or by attending an Urban Forest Plan event this spring or summer.
It’s estimated in the plan that trees provide $260 million in benefits and services for the city every year. That’s a lot of productivity from residents that we may think of as passive! But whether they’re pumping out oxygen, sequestering CO2, lowering air and pavement temperatures or providing habitat for insects and birds, trees are hard-working members of our community that we can always welcome more of.
You can get tickets for an Urban Forest Plan Walkshop in Inwood Hill Park on May 29th, hosted by the Natural Areas Conservancy, here.
You can also sign up to join the NYC UFP virtual community kickoff on June 4th, organized by the City Parks Foundation, here.
