Chapter 2 - Planning the Urban Forest

What are the four components of the planning process?

Baseline data, forums with interested groups, procedures to reach goals, feedback to evaluate the effort

Greenspace planning considers ___, ___, and ___ value of undeveloped parcels during land-use planning.

aesthetic, recreational, ecological

What are reasons a community may place a priority on tree preservation during land development?

trees perform important environmental and social functions, trees add to the value of the property, the community demands tree preservation, trees may be a part of a larger resource conservation program

Define urban forest sustainability

the maintenance of ecological, social, and economic functions and benefits over time

Describe five management improvements needed to achieve urban forest sustainability

improved tree inventory implementation, analysis, assessment, and integration; improved dialogue and collaboration among agencies, tree owners, and managers; improved understanding of the relationship between forest configuration and benefits; improved knowledge of the factors affecting forest health; improved information transfer

Describe the municipal arborist’s role in preparing urban forest plans

providing expertise in the condition and function of the urban forest; coordinating other professionals and technical information; overseeing preparation of the document; acting as contract administrator; gathering applicable resource information; formulating goals and action items; preparing or contributing to written document

What information should the municipal arborist provide to help facilitate development of an urban forestry master plan?

description and evaluation of the urban forest; evaluation of infrastructure conflicts; description of department structure, budget, funding sources, operations, staffing; description of interaction with municipal departments and related community groups

What are agents of change?

Agents of change are factors that influence the dynamics of the vegetation resource over time. They include environmental agents, such as air pollution and pests, public agents such as ordinances and tree boards, and private agents such as the news media and land developers

What are the major components of a comprehensive street tree management plan?

identify locations and sequence of planting to optimize tree cover, identify tasks to be performed and their priority for allocation of funds, tree replacement policy to determine when trees will be removed and replaced, actions to create a wide range of species and ages, information-education program between public and agency, how to incorporate agents of change that arise over time to accomplish goals

What are work plans designed to accomplish?

work plans identify what work will be performed over a 1- to 2-year period, when, by whom, to what standards and safety requirement, and what the cost will be

In the planning process, the method to evaluate effectiveness, incorporate changes in community values, and respond to new information is called ___

feedback

The municipal arborist’s role in meeting criteria for urban forest sustainability includes:

providing expertise and action in selecting, installing, and maintaining new trees, and preserving and maintaining existing trees; providing expertise and outreach to the community and green industries; adopting and adhering to professional standards for tree care; recycling and reusing wood waste products

True/false: to sustain an urban forest, is it important to preserve and protect all trees with the urban forest until they die?

False. The goal of urban forest sustainability is to maximize function and benefits over time. Trees that are growing poorly, pose unreasonable risk, and whose costs exceed benefits are not supporting sustainability

In developing an urban forest master plan for a community, the vegetation that should be considered includes:

street trees and parks; greenbelts

True/false: defining the percentage of canopy cover as well as policies for risk management versus tree removal and encouraging public participation are examples of overall or comprehensive goals that could be defined in an urban forest management plan.

True

A plan focusing on the trees along city streets and within the public rights-of-way that are managed by the public agency is called a ___

street tree master plan

The people and groups who derive benefits from the urban forest and have an interest in its management are called ___

stakeholders

What is the time frame addressed by the following plans: work plan; master plan; management plan

work plan is immediate (1-2 years); master plan is intermediate to long-range (3- >10 years), management plan is short term to intermediate (3-10 years)

Successful tree preservation requires ___ for adequate ___ for tree root and crown development and function

planning; space