Progressive cities aren't just taking shelter under the cover of buildings. From urban farming to forestry, Detroit is replanting itself, one tree at a time.
Excerpt:
A batch of trees soon to be planted on a wild, overgrown patch of land near a Detroit neighborhood is expected to be a step toward bringing back a vibrant, green canopy to the Motor City.
The nonprofit group Greening of Detroit is pushing urban reforestation - even during a tough economy - with projects like a Christmas tree farm, neighborhood gardens and thousands of tree plantings along busy streets…
Bairley said a tree that would cost the city $100 by itself costs only about $15 more in labor for Greening of Detroit to plant, much less than if a crew of city employees did the work. Greening of Detroit expects to plant about 2,400 trees this year, at a cost of about $200,000.
Pepper Provenzano, executive director of Salt Lake City-based TreeLink, said nonprofits like Greening of Detroit are trying to fill in the gap for cities struggling to pay for public safety and other basic services.
"Cities across the country do not recognize and calculate the urban forest as a capital asset," said Provenzano, who helps local organizations pay for tree planting, care and education efforts. "Consequently, the canopy of our urbanized areas is too often relegated to the bottom ... of municipal budgets."
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