Centre Wellington councillors learned here on May 26 that people will pay a lot more for goods at a retail outlet that is located in a tree covered area.
That is just one of the benefits of having a large amount of tree cover, and two groups were hoping to get council enthused about more planting and more learning about trees.
Toni Ellis, of NeighbourWoods, told council that trees not only provide shade and cool areas while building oxygen, they also can boost real estate values, cut energy costs, and also infrastructure costs.
“Trees are increasingly seen to add value to urban communities,” Ellis said, pointing out that the canopy in New York City is estimated to have a value of $12.2-million to that city.
“Tourists will pay 12% more for goods in a treed neighbourhood,” Ellis said, adding that a mature tree can also remove 30 pounds of pollutants from the air every year.
She said more communities are understanding the value of a tree, and Oakville has done a study showing their value at $2.1-million in that community. That includes reduced energy bills.
Ellis said there are a number of groups that appreciate trees in the township. Those include Greenlands Centre Wellington, Greenspaces for Wellington, NeighbourWoods, and the Elora and Salem Horticultural Society.
Ian Rankine, the tree planter from that latter group, said only two of them actually have their main focus on tree planting; the society and NeighbourWoods. He told council NeighbourWoods is the neophyte of the groups, but it is “professionalizing tree planting.”
He noted the two groups of planters have now been working together for five years. He said the horticultural society started planting trees in Elora in a major way in 1858, and again in 1971-72, and again in the 1990s. He noted the society has been planting trees regularly for 150 years, and in the last 37 years, it has planted at least 2,000 of them, mainly in the Elora area.
The most recent efforts have included a minimum of 50 larger trees each year, and that has reached 100 over the past few years. Up until 2000, that work was confined to Elora, but the group started last year with major plantings in Fergus, near Scotland Street, and continued that this year.
“We’re beginning to think Centre Wellington,” Rankine said.
Ellis said the group learned it can successfully plant trees in the fall as well as the spring, and said mulching is very important for good growth.
A group of tree stewards from NeighbourWoods has learned the proper techniques for good pruning, and is willing to teach property owners those methods.
As well, the group prepared tree kits for schools last fall. Ellis noted that one in seven children could get skin cancer, so it is important to get more trees planted in schoolyards.
She said the goal is “the right trees, the right place, and take care of them.”
Ellis added that the groups are planning two tree planting workshops this fall, and are seeking a grant from Environment Canada to help cover costs. She said the township’s Public Works and Parks and Recreation Department staff will be invited to attend.
“Trees have a wonderful ability to transform a subdivision into a neighbourhood,” she said.
Councillor Shawn Watters asked what the workshops will include.
Ellis said they will be a two-step process. The first phase will include what other places are doing. She said Oakville has a 58-page report on its program, and a California centre has an eight-page report that can be used.
She said the workshop will also focus on eight to ten practical things that can be done, including mapping of trees, dedicated watering programs, and brainstorming.
Watters asked how the group came up with 14 to 17 per cent tree coverage in Centre Wellington. Ellis said that was done by Greenlands Centre Wellington, and she added the optimum is 30 to 40%.
Mayor Joanne Ross-Zuj noted that the Greenlands group has also done some mapping projects for trees.
