Media Release
05 October 2009
Council forum seeks community involvement to help protect trees for the future
With the city’s tree population significantly impacted by the prolonged drought, the City of Melbourne is hosting a forum
where Council’s tree experts will explain what the city is doing to maintain Melbourne’s valued tree population, and find
out how they can help ensure a more sustainable future.
Melbourne City Council’s first Eco-City Forum – “Our Trees in a Changing Climate”, will be held this Thursday 8 October.
Eco-City Committee Chair, Dr. Cathy Oke, said that many of Melbourne’s grand boulevard trees were planted more than
100 years ago –
when the city’s climate was cooler and wetter –
and many of these elderly trees were
struggling to
survive in today’s hotter, drier conditions.
“As Melbourne enters its twelfth summer of drought, some of the city’s oldest and most important assets – its trees – will
face another difficult year, with low water supplies and higher temperatures threatening their survival,” Cr Oke said.
“We have a population
of magnificent trees in this city that were planted at a time when our climate was quite different
from today. Melbourne was cooler and wetter back then, so one of today’s primary challenges revolves around finding the
water supplies for trees that have grown for many years under high irrigation regimes, higher rainfall and lower
temperatures.
“We want local residents to come along to this forum, where ongoing efforts to protect the city’s existing tree population
will be explored, and potential solutions proposed,” Cr Oke said.
In 2003 Council estimated that 30 percent of its tree population would need to be replaced over the next decade due to
factors such as ageing and drought. Melbourne lost 900 trees last year.
Melbourne City Council endorsed street planting plans in 2003 to guide new tree planting and the replacement of existing
trees, and these plans have been developed in consultation with local residents.
The
plans aim to preserve and foster local character and a sense of place for each Melbourne precinct by ensuring a
range of distinctive species are identified and selected.
The 2003 10-year plan was to plant more than 5000 additional trees in 182 streets across the city. By 2008 the city had
already achieved 96 percent of this goal and the new goal set for 2009 – 2019 is to plant a further 17500 trees.
Cr Oke said that Council was also working to use its population of 62,000 trees to fight the effects of climate change.
“Trees are an important part of our heritage, and also serve an important role in being an integral component of our city’s
green infrastructure.
“Trees provide shade in our urban environment, reduce heat and make it more comfortable to live in the city, and to make
sure we continue to have these benefits we need ones that will thrive in our changing climate,” Cr Oke said.
The “Our trees in a changing climate” Eco-City Forum will be held on Thursday, 8 October from 6:30pm in the Yarra
Room at Melbourne Town Hall. Council’s Team Leader for Tree Planting, Ian Shears, will talk about current issues and
approaches and take audience questions. Spaces are limited so book early to avoid disappointment. Please RSVP and
email questions in advance to: ecocityforum@melbourne.vic.gov.au
Media contact: Phil Buckley, Media Adviser, Tel: 9658 8426/0409 425873
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