Portland is Named One of 10 Best U.S. Cities for Urban Forests

Brentwood, Darlington, Mt Scott-Arleta, Woodstock Planting, Dec. 8, 2012 — Volunteers celebrate a new tree they planted at a recent neighborhood planting. (FOT board members Fred Nilsen & Nancy Buley on right.)

We did it! Portland has been chosen as one of the 10 best U.S. cities for urban forests by the national nonprofit American Forests.

American Forests worked with a panel of urban forest experts from a broad range of scientific and urban resources disciplines to identify the best urban forests from the 50 most populous U.S. cities. The panel, which included technical advisers from the U.S. Forest Service, looked at independent data and American Forests’ survey responses from local urban forest professionals and community forestry nonprofits. The panel identified the best cities using the following criteria:

The degree to which there is strong civic engagement between the city, nonprofits, community groups and individuals in maintaining the urban forest.
The degree to which the city has developed and implemented urban forest strategies to address issues and challenges such as energy conservation, stormwater and recreation.
The accessibility of urban forest and green spaces to the public, including percentage of park land per capita.
The overall health and condition of the city’s urban forest.
Each city’s documented knowledge of its tree canopy, tree species diversity, and age class range.
The status of urban forest management plans and other important management activities, such as tree canopy goals and ordinances.

Portland Mayor Charlie Hales planting at FOT's first neighborhood planting of the 2012-13 season. (FOT file)

This fact sheet about Portland’s trees describes the benefits our city trees provide. One of the reasons American Forests undertook this project is to showcase the tangible value that urban forests provide to cities and their residents, including economic, aesthetic, social and physical well-being. Various studies have shown a correlation between trees and lower rates of crime, reduced levels of stress and lower body mass.

The project was funded by Urban and Community Forestry of the U.S. Forest Service, Department of Agriculture. You can learn more about the 10 best cities on American Forests’ website.

American Forests restores and protects urban and rural forests. The nonprofit officially launched its urban forestry program in 1982, although the organization had been supporting urban forestry efforts for decades. Over the years, American Forests has sponsored conferences on urban forestry, created an early urban forest analysis tool, CITYgreen, and advocated on behalf of urban forest legislation and support. American Forests is committed to raising awareness about the vital benefits urban forests provide and the science-based tools that are out there to best assess those benefits. In 2012, the organization published Urban Forests Case Studies: Challenges, Potential and Success in a Dozen Cities to serve as a resource and guidebook for cities trying to improve their urban forests.

Founded by Richard Seidman in 1989, Friends of Trees now plants in dozens of cities in the Portland-Vancouver metro area and in the Eugene-Springfield area. Since its founding, the nonprofit has guided community volunteers to plant and care for more than 450,000 trees and native plants. Its first neighborhood planting was funded by a $5,000 grant from American Forests, and in 1993, Friends of Trees was recognized by American Forests as the top Global ReLeaf program in the U.S. with a budget under $500,000.

–Information about the Best 10 U.S. Cities for Urban Forests was provided by American Forests.