TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) – Trees are something you may take for granted, but they are critical to communities on a number of levels. The City of Toledo is focused on making sure there are more trees within the city limits.
Research shows that Toledo does not have enough tree canopy. The city has an average coverage of 17%, which is well below the recommended target of 35-40% for maximum benefits in our climate.
Thanks to a multimillion-dollar federal grant, the city of Toledo will plant thousands of trees over the next few years. Experts say there will be a huge return on that investment for all of us.
According to the city, the project will be a collaboration with the Lucas County Land Bank, Toledo Metroparks, Keep Toledo Lucas County Beautiful, the Woodlawn Foundation and Toledo Public Schools.
Some streets of Toledo are lined with beautiful trees. Many others are not. According to city leaders, there is a tree equity gap in many of Toledo’s disadvantaged communities. They say urban tree cover contributes to things like cleaner air and reduced water runoff.
“We don’t even have the treetop that we would like or should have,” said Joe Fausnaugh, director of parks and youth services for Toledo.
Fausnaugh said the lack of trees creates what are known as heat islands.
“There’s a lot of asphalt and concrete, and that raises the heat in a community. Heat reflects making your home and yards warmer and all of this affects your quality of life. Something as simple as planting a tree can improve your quality of life drastically,” Fausnaugh said.
There are benefits for the environment and your wallet.
“They have health and economic benefits. For example, if you have large shade trees near your home, it will cost less to heat and cool. Trees also absorb water, so we’re paying less to treat stormwater. If they line a road, it makes people go slower, so it’s safer,” Fausnaugh said.
The city received a grant of more than $6 million through the United States Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service that will provide assistance on several levels. Landscape-grade trees that are six to seven feet tall will be planted in streets and neighborhoods. And there are two other components to the project.
“We will remove the dead and damaged trees and replace them with new trees. And there will be an educational component where we will teach children how to plant and care for trees. Hopefully, we can cultivate some future employees for the forest department from that program,” Fausnaugh said.
The trees will not all be the same. There will be maples, oaks and elves. And there is an important reason for this.
“We’re planting a variety of species, so if there’s a disease or insect it’s not going to affect every tree on the street. It might just touch one or two,” Fausnaugh said.
Thanks to a special $200,000 grant from the United States Forest Service, reforestation projects are underway in city parks.
“We’re planting thousands of trees that will eventually turn this into a forest area that we don’t have to mow anymore. They’ve planted 15,000 trees in six parks and they’ve been doing it for about three weeks,” Fausnaugh said.
When it comes to the multi-million dollar grant, this is the year for planning. Planting, tree removal and educational training will take place over about four years after that.
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