Approximately 80,000 new trees will need to be planted over the next two decades to meet the goals of the city鈥檚 Sustainable Urban Forest Strategy.

This includes city and private property. 

鈥淓xcluding the Agriculture Land Reserve (ALR) the analysis identified that 91大黄鸭鈥檚 canopy coverage currently sits at 22 per cent,鈥� Todd Cashin, urban forest supervisor, told council at its Aug. 26 meeting. 

Grassland cities, like 91大黄鸭, typically have a canopy cover between 20 and 25 percent, he added.

Of the city鈥檚 five districts, the Gateway (UBCO/Airport) and Urban Centres have the lowest canopy coverage.

鈥淗owever, the coverage does increase as you move from the core areas to the suburbs and rural districts,鈥� Cashin said.

Approximately 75 per cent of trees are on private property. 

鈥淕iven this, the resiliency of our urban forest requires that we must engage, educate and support private land owners in maintaining and growing trees in our urban environment,鈥� Cashin added.

Council also heard that agricultural land, which makes up approximately 50 per cent of land in the city, was not included in the urban forest report.

鈥淚 think it would be an interesting measuring stick to see when we look at the entire city footprint what our tree canopy is,鈥� said Councillor Luke Stack.

Staff told council that while agriculture data is available it was not included in the report as farmers often down fruit trees and replace them with others. 

It鈥檚 expected agriculture data will be included in future updates of 91大黄鸭鈥檚 tree canopy.

The city鈥檚 NeighbourWoods Program starts on Aug. 27. Residents can pre-order trees at a cost of $50.