We all live in an urban forest. Find out more about it and your place in it.
When you gaze out your window and see trees and shrubs, you're gazing at the urban forest. This forest encompasses all trees across both public and private lands. Similar to the natural forests you find outside Sydney, the urban forest is more than just trees. It is a diverse ecosystem, featuring varying levels of flora, from towering trees to small shrubs, grasses, and even green roofs — all contributing to an intricate urban ecosystem.
When we discuss enhancing the urban forest, our focus often centres on planting more trees, which is crucial. However, if you want to contribute, and space constraints hinder you from tree planting, contributing with garden plantings or even pot plants on a balcony can also make a substantial impact. In typical forest fashion, trees play a dominant role by providing above-ground protection for smaller plants within our urban landscape.
CBCity has long been committed to enhancing its Urban Forest, joining greater Sydney in striving to achieve Canopy Targets by 2036. Currently our City has an average canopy cover of approximately 15% across the Urban Forest, we have ambitious goals set for the future:
- Suburban Areas: 40% Canopy Cover
- Medium High Density: 25% Canopy Cover
- Commercial Centers: 15% Canopy Cover
These targets are detailed in our strategic plan, Connected City 2036, which you can explore further on the link below.
As part of the comprehensive Connective City 2036 plan, we're crafting an Urban Forest Strategic Plan. This Plan will meticulously outline where new canopies can be planted, how we can revise and attain these targets, and the associated costs of increasing our urban forest tree population.
Our urban forest isn't just a place for humans; it's a thriving ecosystem supporting various forms of wildlife. Trees host insects, which, in turn, become a food source for other creatures. Birds find refuge in the high branches and tree hollows, which are essential for the reproduction of many native species. We actively protect old trees to preserve these hollows, even pruning them when necessary to maintain safety. Additionally, we install habitat boxes and, in some cases, create artificial hollows, always prioritizing the health of the tree and the biodiversity it supports.
The NSW Heat Vulnerability Index (HVI) is a valuable tool that identifies areas in the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Area that are more susceptible to the adverse effects of urban heat. It draws insights from three critical components:
- Exposure: This assesses how much a population is exposed to urban heat, considering local weather conditions, built environment characteristics and socio-economic disparities.
- Sensitivity: It examines the socio-economic characteristics of the population that might increase vulnerability, including factors like advanced age and social isolation
- Adaptive capacity: This component evaluates the extent to which a population can adapt to external factors, such as access to the internet or the presence of cooling amenities
The current (2016) HVI is the result of a comprehensive analysis that combines Land Surface Temperature data from Landsat 8 with vegetation cover data. This is integrated with socio-economic data from the 2016 ABS Census and mapped to the ABS Statistical Area Level 1 (SA1).
At CBCity, we leverage the HVI in conjunction with tree canopy coverage data when prioritising tree planting initiatives and crafting tree planting programs. This approach allows us to strategically enhance urban comfort and wellbeing, making our community more resilient to the challenges of urban heat.
Council is currently developing an Urban Forest Strategic Plan. The new Plan will help us identify where trees can be planted, possible costs involved, and more clearly define our canopy targets for the future.
The Draft Urban Forest Strategy will be placed on exhibition for community consultation.