Planting Trees Where They are Most Needed

Made up of trees on public and private lands, the community or urban forest is essential to a healthy, thriving, and resilient community. When spread equitably and supported by other urban greening measures, a well-managed urban forest can deliver a wide range of benefits such as healthier soil, increased biodiversity, new wildlife habitats, shading from heat, and greater community health and well-being.

Through funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, the U.S. Forest Service is making historic investments in boosting the tree canopy in urban, suburban, and rural communities nationwide. The agency has selected 385 grant proposals from entities working to increase equitable access to trees and green spaces and the many benefits they offer.

In this article from the USFS, Andrew Avitt highlights two complementary efforts to expand the community or urban forest in Southern California:

• Early Action Implementation for LA County Community Forest Management Plan:
  The project addresses the tree canopy deficit within disadvantaged communities in the unincorporated areas of the county by assessing areas of low canopy coverage, planting diverse tree species, and creating workforce development opportunities for the continued maintenance and monitoring of new and existing trees.
• From Redlining to Greenlining: Planting Justice in SoCal: This project involves planting trees on public and private property trees across communities to maximize environmental benefits such as extreme heat mitigation. This project uses tree planting as a vehicle to engage and empower over 25,000 people in ownership of their urban forest through engagement, education, workforce development, and collaboration.

To learn more about these efforts, please read the source article.