We're in the Green!
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Healthy Trees
Albuquerque Uses Trees to Promote Environmental Health
Trees Improve Our Quality of Life
As a strong believer in the benefits trees provide to our quality of life, Mayor Chávez promotes planting and caring for trees in Albuquerque."I am particularly impressed with Mayor Chávez's initiative.
He is committed to trees in Albuquerque and rightly so. We found in our study that the city’s trees are dramatically improving urban life and making Albuquerque a more enjoyable place to live, work, shop, and play.
Over the years, the people in Albuquerque have invested millions of dollars in the municipal forest. Citizens are now receiving a return on that investment."Source: Dr. Greg McPherson, Director of the Center for Urban Forest Research
The best thing you can do is plant trees at your home or business.
Take Action
- Find out which trees are best for you.
- Reduce pollen by avoiding restricted trees.
- Take care of your trees. Learn how!
- Teach your kids about trees. Explore Albuquerque Parks and Open Spaces.
- Use a permeable paving surface to let water seep into the ground around your trees.
- Plant a green roof to reduce the "heat island effect" in Albuquerque.
Planting the right trees in the right places can have positive environmental, economic, and sociological impacts.
That's why Mayor Chávez is taking trees seriously.
What is Mayor Chávez Doing?
"We are ready to design the future of trees in the City of Albuquerque." - Mayor Chávez, 2005 State of the City Address
Recently, Mayor Chávez launched an major Urban Forest Improvement Initiative to take advantage of all the ways trees help Albuquerque. Here's what he's done so far:
- Planting Trees -- Mayor Chávez has pledged to plant 2,000 trees per year!
- Master Planning -- The Mayor promoted efforts to develop a master plan for City trees as well as manuals on Tree Protection and Care. He also asked the Parks and Recreation department to complete a comprehensive inventory of trees in parks and street medians.
- Expert Advice -- Mayor Chávez asked the USDA Forest Service Center for Urban Forest Research to develop a Municipal Forest Resource Analysis for Albuquerque. View the full report >>
- Community Building -- The TreeCentennial program has given away over 3,000 trees for planting in Albuquerque in honor of our 300th birthday.
- Dedication -- The City hired a City Forester to help design and manage the living trees that make our city a healthy place to live.
Meet Albuquerque's City Forester >>
Learn More
- What is an urban heat island?
- How trees and vegetation can help
- In the press: "NM To Gain 42,000 Trees: Project Part of a Program to Reduce Carbon Dioxide"
- Visit Tree New Mexico
- Learn about permeable pavements
For the Classroom
Are you a teacher? Consider some of the following resources to help kids learn about urban forestry.
Questions?
Contact the City Forester