Barriers to Urban Tree-Planting and Solutions Rooted in Non-Profits
By Mia DiFelice
Despite the popularity of trees in Pittsburgh and their ability to mitigate the heat island effect, planting faces many barriers. Nonprofits help overcome these barriers with solutions driven by community participation.
Research shows that in cities across the globe, some neighborhoods are hotter than others because they lack greenery that would pull heat from the air and provide shade. Scientists call this the Urban Heat Island Effect. Climate change will intensify the heat island effect, and more residents will face heat-related illnesses — especially in underserved and minority communities. Increasing tree cover can mitigate the heat island effect, but why do many cities struggle to grow their canopies?
The City of Pittsburgh has focused public and non-profit efforts on tree-planting. We can use the city as a case study to explore barriers to planting and how non-profit partnerships can overcome them.
The City’s Forestry Division reports that residential areas show the greatest potential for planting. At first glance, the benefits seem clear. Trees provide shade that cools down homes and yards. If residents reduce their air conditioner use, this can translate to energy savings. There are also broader benefits, such as reducing heat-related illness among at-risk populations like the elderly. Residents seem to be aware of the benefits — the Forestry Division reports that 74% of residents support increased planting and maintenance.
But even with obvious benefits and widespread support, Pittsburgh still struggles to grow its canopy. One barrier is that residents only see benefits after a tree’s two to five-year maturation period. Some residents may plan to move in a few years, and they may not invest in trees if most of the benefits accrue after they’re gone. Renters have even less incentive than homeowners to invest in long-term benefits, and less agency to affect the land they live on. Moreover, the least-shaded communities are low-income, where residents are more likely to spend their money meeting immediate, everyday needs.
A second barrier to planting is the time and energy it takes to research, plant, and maintain the right tree. While saplings are relatively inexpensive, a planting project requires learning what kind of tree will fit the space, what location will provide the best shade, and how to care for it properly. Residents may need to consider how to safely plant trees near their homes and cultivate a sustainable tree ecosystem. Planting might also require government paperwork, if a resident wants to plant trees along a public street.
These barriers prevent private planting. At the same time, Pittsburgh struggles to gather funds for public planting. In 2012, the Forestry Division reported that 44 percent of its funds go to maintenance, and only 17 percent went to new tree planting. Lisa Ceoffe, the City’s urban forester, revealed that much of the current planting does not increase the overall number of trees, and simply replaces trees lost to development.
When public funds are low, cities can turn to non-profits, which can dedicate additional resources toward tree planting and involve the community.
In 2005, the City’s Shade Tree Committee took inventory of Pittsburgh’s tree population and realized that it couldn’t keep up with the rate of losses. Committee members founded Tree Pittsburgh, a community-focused nonprofit dedicated to planting and caring for the city’s trees. Tree Pittsburgh provides forestry expertise, trees, supplies, and event coordination for their partners, which include businesses, community organizations, schools, and local groups. According to Matthew Erb, Tree Pittsburgh’s director of urban forestry, most of its funding comes from foundations, with a small percentage coming from donations, state grants, and small revenue-generating operations including a nursery.
By transferring private wealth to underserved communities, nonprofits address neighborhood inequities. In the following figure, for each Pittsburgh neighborhood I compare poverty rates (from the Pittsburgh Neighborhood Project) with the number of street trees per capita (from the Western PA Conservancy’s “Burgh’s Eye View” project). The data show a clear relationship: neighborhoods with higher poverty rates are more likely to have fewer trees.
Similarly, in the next figure I display each neighborhood’s street trees per capita against the Neighborhood Project’s “disadvantage score.” Each score is compiled using data on poverty rate, unemployment, education levels, gun violence, income, and percentage of single mothers. It ranges from 1 to 5, with 5 being the most disadvantaged. The figure shows that the most disadvantaged neighborhoods have fewer trees per capita.
Tree Pittsburgh’s programs focus on disadvantaged neighborhoods. It uses census and County environmental justice data to target projects and services where they are needed most
For example, Tree Pittsburgh has worked with the neighborhood of Manchester-Chateau, a neighborhood that has experienced a history of discrimination. In the 1930s, the national Home Owners’ Loan Corporation designated Manchester-Chateau “hazardous” in a practice known as redlining. Individuals in “hazardous” neighborhoods across the U.S. were denied housing loans, often because of their “undesirable” residents (i.e. ethnic and religious minorities). In the decades since, redlined neighborhoods have faced lower property values, enduring housing discrimination, and disenfranchisement.
Today, Manchester-Chateau has some of the lowest tree cover in the city (17% in Manchester and 5% in Chateau, compared to Pittsburgh’s 42% average). It also has some of the greatest potential for planting, mostly on private property.
Tree Pittsburgh has worked with residents through community meetings and a Steering Committee that combined residents, City officials, and foresters. The result was the Releaf Manchester-Chateau project, which pinpointed the neighborhood’s greatest tree needs and potential. Planned programs include a community orchard and subsidized tree planting. Funding is still pending on this project, but Tree Pittsburgh has already succeeded in working closely with residents, pooling resources and voices, and producing an extensive, actionable planting plan.
As temperatures rise, tree-planting helps to future-proof cities and improve the health of residents. Trees are a long-term investment that many residents and local governments struggle to address themselves. But as seen in Pittsburgh, nonprofits can get more trees in the ground with community participation.
Mia DiFelice is a Master of International Development student at the University of Pittsburgh, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. Her research interests include climate change and environmental justice.
Thank you to Lisa Ceoffe (Pittsburgh Urban Forester), Matthew Erb (Tree Pittsburgh), Phil Gruszka (Forester for Western PA Conservancy), and Aaron Sukenik (Hilltop Alliance) for providing your time and expertise throughout this post’s development.
