SPOKANE, Wash. — More than 400 dead trees will be removed in Spokane thanks to the City of Spokane’s new tree equity project.
The five-year, $6-million initiative is helping many neighborhoods in Spokane get a makeover this winter.
Katie Kosanke of Urban Forestry in the City of Spokane said, “This is going to be historic for us to plant a significant number of trees in our community but also to take care of what we already have.”
The cost to remove one tree can be more than $1,000, a necessity that has become a luxury for some. This program does is it for free in communities that need it most.
“We really want to be looking at that environmental justice issue and putting trees where they are the most needed,” said Kosanke.
Tree Equity Spokane found that lower income areas in Spokane can get up to 13 degrees warmer in the summer months compared to more affluent parts of town due to lack of tree canopy.
“We want everybody to experience the benefits that trees provide. They filter the air that we breathe,” said Kosanke. “And really it is a wide range of environmental, social and economic benefits that trees provide.”
Hundreds of trees have been located and identified for removal in 15 different Spokane neighborhoods. These dead and damaged trees pose health and public safety risks that this project hopes to mitigate.
“For the first time ever and on a large scale, we are able to provide some support for those trees in the public right of way,” said Kosanke.
The program will start planting new trees to replace the old in the spring.
Find out how if your neighborhood can get a free tree, visit SpokaneCity.org/UrbanForestry.
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