Urban Forest Strategy
One of the best things about our local area is our big and beautiful trees. They provide shade to cool our streets and homes, they clean the air, provide habitat for wildlife, and make our streets and parks look spectacular.
We’ve already lost around 16 Sydney Cricket Grounds worth of trees and we’re rapidly losing the space to plant more trees, which is why we need to take action.
To address the impacts of climate change and ensure our community continues to benefit from tree canopy cover, we drafted an Urban Forest Strategy which proposed a goal of 30% tree canopy cover by 2050.
The Urban Forest Strategy was adopted in November 2023. View the final strategy.(PDF, 9MB)
What is an urban forest?
Whilst our urban forest includes all vegetation, we recognise that trees provide the greatest combination of beneficial services to our community, environment, and economy. That's why the Urban Forest Strategy (UFS)(PDF, 9MB) focuses on growing our urban tree assets.
Woollahra Urban Forest - Benefits to our environment
Why do we need an Urban Forest Strategy?
Sadly, data shows we are steadily losing our canopy of trees. Since 2010 we have lost an area just larger than Edgecliff. The loss of so many trees will make our streets and homes hotter, our local wildlife will decline, and there will be more carbon in the air. If we don't act now, we'll have just 23.8% tree canopy cover by 2050, which is less than our current canopy cover of 27.4%.
Find out more about the Woollahra Urban Forest
Take a trip through Woollahra's Urban Forest and find out why we value our trees so highly.
About the Urban Forest Strategy
The biggest impact we can have on the cooling and wellbeing of our local area is to plant more large trees - and protect the trees we currently have.
To reach the UFS target we need to re-think how we integrate trees into our parklands, road reserves, streets, public spaces, and private properties, maximising all available and suitable public land.
To achieve 30% canopy cover we'll need to plant 13,410 trees across the Council area over the next 25 years. Our research shows that Council has the capacity to plant 8,101 of these trees on public land, which is 2.5 times more than what would be planted under our current ‘business as usual’ planting rate.
Private land covers 64% of the Council area, which means we can't achieve a 30% increase in tree canopy alone; we need your help.
Tree Experts: How we plan to achieve the UFS goal
Why plant more trees?
In addition to providing shade, cooling our streets, cleaning the air, and providing habitat for wildlife, Australian research has found a number of health improvements in neighbourhoods with at least 30% tree canopy cover. More trees lead to:
- Reduced psychological distress
- Less chance of developing diabetes
- Lower rates of cardiovascular disease
- Lower rates of cardio hypertension
Trees also create a greener and more sustainable environment. Did you know?
- Trees remove carbon dioxide and air pollutants. In Woollahra, trees are estimated to remove 6,724kg of air pollutants per year and 166 tonnes of carbon.
- Trees help manage stormwater when it rains. They soak up huge amounts of water through their branches, leaves and stems, and their clever root systems act as conduits, increasing the infiltration of groundwater at a rate 27 times higher than areas without trees.
- Trees improve water quality by intercepting rainfall.
Where will the new trees be planted?
We want to plant the right trees in the right places to ensure the health and longevity of the tree and minimise disturbance to infrastructure and homes. To do this, we’re using data, including urban heat maps and canopy cover data, to select planting locations.
Our parks offer the greatest opportunities for plantings on public land due to the amount of available space. However, this needs to be balanced with the needs of people using the park for sports and recreation. Our nature strips are another impactful location for tree planting as there is available space to plant and people would benefit from the shade brought by new trees.
To reach 30% canopy cover, trees also need to be planted on private land, which covers 64% of our Council area.
How many trees will we plant?
The next 9 years of planting is crucial - we need to plant more trees over this period in order to give the plants more time to mature by 2050. We'll also be planting more medium and larger size trees to help us achieve our canopy target quicker.
Protecting existing trees
Aside from planting new trees, we need to care for and protect our existing trees. Removing trees is always a last resort and replacing them is a priority.
We’re looking at our planning controls to see how we can do more to encourage large and medium size trees to be incorporated into new developments.
Woollahra Urban Forest - social and economic benefits
How you can help
There is not enough available space on public land for us to plant enough trees to achieve 30% tree canopy cover; we need your help.
We’re calling on you to plant trees too, at your home, your business, and school - preferably trees that are native to our area.
We’ve set an ambitious target of 5,000 new trees to be planted on private land, to help us reach 30% tree canopy cover by 2050.
We need to work together to turn this decline around and create a greener, cooler, and healthier environment for generations to come.
FAQ
Why a target of 30% tree canopy cover?
Our initial objective was to match the NSW Government’s target of 40% tree canopy cover, however further research revealed this isn't feasible in our Council area.
Our consultant, Edge Impact, applied their unique Tree Planting Predictor (TPP) modelling tool to determine what planting capacity Council has on public land. The results of the TPP show that there simply isn’t enough space in the Council area to plant enough trees to match the State’s 40% target.
Further research was then undertaken to explore appropriate canopy target options. With consideration given to implementation, financial commitment, and available plantable space, we have established that a canopy cover target of 30% by 2050 is ambitious but achievable.
Achieving this target will require an increased financial commitment of at least $14.8M over the next 25 years to plant and establish trees on Council managed public land. Additional funding will likely be required to support the ongoing maintenance associated with managing a healthy, thriving tree population.
How will planting locations and tree species be determined?
To achieve the 30% canopy cover target, we need to plant at every suitable location. Our consultants, Edge Impact, have used their Street Tree Prioritising (STP) tool to identify suitable planting locations and the final planting locations will be determined by Council staff once a site inspection has been completed.
We will notify nearby residents and businesses before trees are planted to provide them with information including the approximate planting location, species, and planting date.
When will planting take place?
We are currently looking at suitable planting locations and species. Planting will occur over the next 25 years and nearby properties will be notified before any planting takes place.
Why not plant all of the trees now?
Before trees are planted, we need to determine planting locations and species. When selecting the right species we need to factor in climate risk and make sure we have a diverse range of trees across our area.
We also need to procure tree stock, engage a contractor to do the planting, and notify nearby properties that planting will be taking place. 8,101 trees is a lot so we can’t do it all at once and will need to pace planting from now until 2050.
Who will maintain the trees once they’re planted?
Council will engage contractors to plant trees on public land, and they will be responsible for maintaining these trees for the first 18 months. This is known as the ‘establishment period’ and includes watering and formative pruning.
After the first 18 months, Council staff will maintain the trees under Council’s normal street tree maintenance process.
Which tree species are suitable for our area?
The species list for all street trees is identified in Council’s Street Tree Masterplan (STMP)(PDF, 22MB). As part of the Urban Forest Strategy work, we'll review the species list with consideration to climate change adaptability and make sure there is a diverse mix of species to safeguard our tree population against pests and diseases. We need a balanced mix of native and exotic species, deciduous and evergreen trees.
One of our key tree selection objectives in the STMP is to make sure we plant the right tree for the right location. In other words, to ensure that the selection of the species is appropriate to the local environmental conditions and the constraints of the planting location.