Council seeks recognition on trees

To find out more about the more than 165,000 trees the City of Greater Geelong manages in our parks, reserves and streets, visit our Urban Forest Dashboard.

Mayor Trent Sullivan

“Council’s decision last night reflects a strong commitment to make Greater Geelong a greener place.

We know that more trees make areas more liveable and cooler, clean the air, support biodiversity and improve our wellbeing.

Feedback from the community through engagement for the One Million Trees Plan and our Sustainability Framework Action Plan 2020–2022 strongly suggests it would support acknowledgement of our Urban Forest management.”

As part of ongoing sustainability efforts to increase the region’s tree canopy, Council will apply for the City of Greater Geelong to be recognised as a Tree City of the World.

The program is an initiative of the United Nations and the Arbor Day Foundation to recognise cities committed to ensuring that their urban forests and trees are properly maintained, sustainably managed and celebrated.

Only seven Australian cities out of 139 cities around the world are recognised and the City of Greater Geelong would be the first in Victoria if successful.

There are several benefits of being recognised as a Tree City of the World, including:

• supporting the City of Greater Geelong’s sustainability initiatives by promoting the importance of trees and the health and biodiversity outcomes that they help deliver

• raising the profile of our commitment to a cool green city

• connecting to a global network of cities practicing urban forestry excellence and

• meeting an action of the City’s Urban Forest Strategy to strengthen partnerships with other greening agencies.

The Arbor Day Foundation requires cities to be able to demonstrate a commitment to caring for the urban forest, have a team responsible for tree management, have tree management rules in place, have an inventory and dedicated resources and celebrate trees.

Councillor Jim MasonEnvironment portfolio chair

“Collaborating and getting new ideas from other cities on tree management is another step towards our Clever and Creative future.

Being a Tree City of the World would allow us to gain valuable insights into the most successful approaches to managing urban trees and forests.

Our current tree population, from the Eucalyptus and Acacia species in the You Yangs to the Moonah Woodlands on the Bellarine Peninsula, would benefit from this and pave the way for increased tree canopy.”