Ownership matters
Most trees in most communities can be found on land that’s privately owned: by homeowners, developers, businesses, institutions like churches, colleges and universities. The remainder rests on public lands.
When you’re done reading the examples below, continue to the Incentives to Property Owners section.
Percentage of Tree Canopy Privately-owned
Trees don't own the land they grow on
That single fact opens up one of the most complicated issues facing advocates for tree equity and canopy growth. Private land offers the best opportunities for creation and conservation of tree canopy. But it can make urban forestry more of a political act than arboricultural. Municipal foresters can’t simply decree what owners do on their property. Some owners may keep or plant trees voluntarily; but others may only act if local law requires.
But to achieve even modest tree equity and canopy goals, cities and towns often need carefully-planned long-term strategies to foster community support.
Until 2021, Charlotte NC did not require owners to retain even a minimum number of trees or percentage of existing canopy when clearing a development site. Essentially, they clearcut the site and started from zero. Note the extensive paved parking lots shaded by very few trees if any.
Shortly after this picture appeared in the Charlotte Observer, the city enacted new rules which required tree retention and/or planting on new development.
Strategies for protecting private tree canopy
Most communities adopt one — or more often — a combination of four different approaches to retain or add tree canopy.
USDA Forest Service researchers studied the impacts of different tree planting initiatives. Their study, Beyond the Golden Shovel, identified approaches that were most effective in promoting tree equity.
Strategies for protecting public trees
Most communities rely on adopting ordinances or setting policies that direct how public trees are managed. These rules describe which agencies and individuals will oversee city trees, public responsibilities and prohibitions, capital project design and development, street and park tree maintenance and more.
Other than ordinances, some communities adopt policies that mandate collaborative planning among all tree-relevant agencies and alignment of agency workplans. Seattle, for example, organizes seven different agencies under the umbrella of the city sustainability officer.
Codes and policies
Whether for public property or private, most community enact ordinances that attempt to govern what happens on public land — and how private owners treat their own trees.