Portland would plant 660,000 trees, reduce cost of tree care for residents under new plan
Portland wants to plant 660,000 trees over the next 40 years and launch a citywide and city-managed street tree maintenance program that will take the financial burden off residents. A draft of the new Urban Forest Plan says the decline of the city’s tree canopy in recent years, an imbalance of tree cover across the city and the increased frequency of extreme weather events are driving the need to protect, restore and expand the city’s trees and vegetation. The draft plan calls for expanding tree cover to 45% citywide by 2065. That will require 10,700 more acres of canopy or 660,000 trees – nearly one tree for every Portlander. Portland currently has 4.2 million trees covering 27,600 acres, or about a third of Portland’s land area. Trees are key for livability, providing access to nature and shade during heat waves as well as cleaning the air and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, city officials said. The plan, developed by the city with public input and released for comment this week, is an update of a 2004 plan and would be funded by more than $100 million from Portland’s Clean Energy Fund as well funding from other sources. It calls for every neighborhood to have at least 25% tree canopy cover. Today, slightly less than half of the city’s neighborhoods have reached that mark. The areas with the least tree cover include downtown and land adjoining the Columbia and Willamette rivers. The biggest push, however, will be on planting more trees in the city’s residential neighborhoods, especially on the far east side of Portland, where lower income and many people of color live. The outer east side’s tree canopy stands at 27% and the goal is to get it to 50%. On the inner east side, trees cover about 26% of the neighborhoods and the goal is to get that canopy to 45%. The city prioritizes “tree planting in communities noted for having low canopy and a greater portion of people with lower incomes. This helps us to increase equitable access to the benefits trees provide,” said Portland Parks & Recreation spokesperson Mark Ross. The west side – which includes Forest Park – has a canopy of 66% and the city does not plan on expanding it. Portland Parks & RecreationThe city also plans on taking over street tree maintenance and planting. Street trees are those planted along streets, sidewalks and spaces between the curbs. Residents now are responsible for caring for those trees next to their property, which discourages street tree planting because it’s costly, time-consuming and a financial burden, especially for lower-income Portlanders, city officials said.Last year, Portland Parks & Recreation received $65 million from the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund, a climate fund seeded by a 1% tax on large retailers in the city, to start a street maintenance program.Bureau officials estimated it will take five years to develop and launch a pilot program. It will seek to place each of the city’s 240,000 street trees into a five- to 10-year management cycle of inspection, pruning, hazard abatement, removal and replacement if needed. The money also will enable the planting of tens of thousands of new street trees and will, over time, replace an estimated 76,000 trees undersized for their location. According to the draft plan, Portland will aim to increase street tree canopy to at least 35% in the next 20 years from the current 24%.The Clean Energy Fund, which has been flush with surplus revenue in recent years, will also fund much of the city’s tree planting efforts. To that end, the fund has allocated $40 million over five years to Parks & Recreation to plant and establish at least 15,000 trees on public and private property. In addition to planting, the program will track tree health and offer tree care resources to residents. The Parks Bureau received another $5 million over five years from the fund for low-income property owners to access money for maintenance of existing private property trees. It also received $35 million for existing arborists, tree inspectors and staff responsible for tree care in parks and public spaces as well as to reduce the cost of tree management by reducing or eliminating tree permit application and inspection fees and funding some private property tree care. And it got more than $2 million for workforce and contractor development for tree planting and maintenance.The Portland Bureau of Transportation also received $5 million for the 82nd Avenue street tree expansion program, which will create space to plant medium and large trees along 2,500 feet of sidewalk along 82nd Ave. The city also will use money from the general fund, Portland parks levy and the Title 11 Tree Planting & Preservation Fund to carry out the recommendations in the Urban Forest Plan, Ross said.The city has steadily increased planting since 2019 in priority neighborhoods via direct planting at parks, schools, restoration sites and natural areas, by planting free street trees and giving away trees that residents can plant in their own yards. During the 2024 planting season, the city and its partners planted or gave away 11,000 trees. The number was nearly 8,000 trees in 2023 and over 10,000 trees in 2022.Residents can share feedback on the draft plan until April 13. — Gosia Wozniacka covers environmental justice, climate change, the clean energy transition and other environmental issues. Reach her at gwozniacka@oregonian.com or 971-421-3154.Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.
Portland wants to plant 660,000 trees over the next 40 years and launch a citywide and city-managed street tree maintenance program.
Portland wants to plant 660,000 trees over the next 40 years and launch a citywide and city-managed street tree maintenance program that will take the financial burden off residents.
A draft of the new Urban Forest Plan says the decline of the city’s tree canopy in recent years, an imbalance of tree cover across the city and the increased frequency of extreme weather events are driving the need to protect, restore and expand the city’s trees and vegetation.
The draft plan calls for expanding tree cover to 45% citywide by 2065. That will require 10,700 more acres of canopy or 660,000 trees – nearly one tree for every Portlander.
Portland currently has 4.2 million trees covering 27,600 acres, or about a third of Portland’s land area.
Trees are key for livability, providing access to nature and shade during heat waves as well as cleaning the air and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, city officials said.
The plan, developed by the city with public input and released for comment this week, is an update of a 2004 plan and would be funded by more than $100 million from Portland’s Clean Energy Fund as well funding from other sources.
It calls for every neighborhood to have at least 25% tree canopy cover. Today, slightly less than half of the city’s neighborhoods have reached that mark.
The areas with the least tree cover include downtown and land adjoining the Columbia and Willamette rivers.
The biggest push, however, will be on planting more trees in the city’s residential neighborhoods, especially on the far east side of Portland, where lower income and many people of color live.
The outer east side’s tree canopy stands at 27% and the goal is to get it to 50%. On the inner east side, trees cover about 26% of the neighborhoods and the goal is to get that canopy to 45%.
The city prioritizes “tree planting in communities noted for having low canopy and a greater portion of people with lower incomes. This helps us to increase equitable access to the benefits trees provide,” said Portland Parks & Recreation spokesperson Mark Ross.
The west side – which includes Forest Park – has a canopy of 66% and the city does not plan on expanding it.
Portland Parks & Recreation
The city also plans on taking over street tree maintenance and planting. Street trees are those planted along streets, sidewalks and spaces between the curbs.
Residents now are responsible for caring for those trees next to their property, which discourages street tree planting because it’s costly, time-consuming and a financial burden, especially for lower-income Portlanders, city officials said.
Last year, Portland Parks & Recreation received $65 million from the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund, a climate fund seeded by a 1% tax on large retailers in the city, to start a street maintenance program.
Bureau officials estimated it will take five years to develop and launch a pilot program.
It will seek to place each of the city’s 240,000 street trees into a five- to 10-year management cycle of inspection, pruning, hazard abatement, removal and replacement if needed.
The money also will enable the planting of tens of thousands of new street trees and will, over time, replace an estimated 76,000 trees undersized for their location.
According to the draft plan, Portland will aim to increase street tree canopy to at least 35% in the next 20 years from the current 24%.
The Clean Energy Fund, which has been flush with surplus revenue in recent years, will also fund much of the city’s tree planting efforts.
To that end, the fund has allocated $40 million over five years to Parks & Recreation to plant and establish at least 15,000 trees on public and private property. In addition to planting, the program will track tree health and offer tree care resources to residents.
The Parks Bureau received another $5 million over five years from the fund for low-income property owners to access money for maintenance of existing private property trees.
It also received $35 million for existing arborists, tree inspectors and staff responsible for tree care in parks and public spaces as well as to reduce the cost of tree management by reducing or eliminating tree permit application and inspection fees and funding some private property tree care. And it got more than $2 million for workforce and contractor development for tree planting and maintenance.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation also received $5 million for the 82nd Avenue street tree expansion program, which will create space to plant medium and large trees along 2,500 feet of sidewalk along 82nd Ave.
The city also will use money from the general fund, Portland parks levy and the Title 11 Tree Planting & Preservation Fund to carry out the recommendations in the Urban Forest Plan, Ross said.
The city has steadily increased planting since 2019 in priority neighborhoods via direct planting at parks, schools, restoration sites and natural areas, by planting free street trees and giving away trees that residents can plant in their own yards. During the 2024 planting season, the city and its partners planted or gave away 11,000 trees. The number was nearly 8,000 trees in 2023 and over 10,000 trees in 2022.
Residents can share feedback on the draft plan until April 13.
— Gosia Wozniacka covers environmental justice, climate change, the clean energy transition and other environmental issues. Reach her at gwozniacka@oregonian.com or 971-421-3154.
Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.