A new strategy to guide the growth of Canberra’s urban forest has been released by the Transport Canberra and City Services Directorate.
Minister for City Services, Chris Steel said the Directorate’s Urban Forest Strategy 2021-2045 was based on community consultation which sought feedback on the vision, objectives and actions of the draft Strategy.
“Canberra’s urban forest is one of our city’s most precious community assets,” Mr Steel said.
“It contributes to cooling our suburbs, cleaning our air, improving the liveability of our streetscapes, providing habitat for local wildlife and enhancing community wellbeing,” he said.
“The Canberra community has indicated strong support for the Strategy, with 92 per cent of respondents supported its vision and 97 per cent either fully or generally supported its objectives.”
Mr Steel said the Strategy provided a framework to maintain and enhance Canberra’s urban forest and worked towards the target of 30 per cent canopy cover, or equivalent, by 2045.
He said the Directorate would develop an implementation and evaluation plan to ensure the Strategy’s actions were completed, tracked and evaluated, and that the community was kept updated on progress.
“To grow our urban forest, we will plant hundreds of thousands of more trees, using more diverse and resilient species,” he said.
“Planting locations will focus on areas where canopy cover is lower and where existing trees are ageing or dying,” Mr Steel said.
The Directorate’s 53-page Urban Forest Strategy can be accessed at this PS News link.
