Community Trees

Through a generous grant from the Michigan Department of Natural Resource’s Urban and Community Forestry Program (MDNR UCF), the Washtenaw County Conservation District (WCCD), in collaboration with your elected local officials and/or staff, piloted a project to assist your community in identifying strengths, challenges, and opportunities to enhance and protect trees and forests. Trees provide a wide range of benefits: the oxygen we breathe, stormwater mitigation, cleaner air and water, reduction in surface heat island effects, carbon sequestration, and improvements to human mental and physical health.  These benefits make trees a vital component of any community and excellent problem solvers.  However, sometimes policies or the distribution of trees on the landscape reduces or limits their beneficial impact.

The pilot project aimed to identify how trees could best serve the residents of each pilot municipality: Bridgewater Township, Sharon Township, Ypsilanti Township, and the City of Ypsilanti.  The pilot project outline:

1. ​Community Surveys: online and paper forms (Jan-March 2022)
2. Ordinance, Zoning, and Master Plan Review (Jan-April 2022)
3. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Assessment: current distribution of trees and potential planting and/or preservation areas (Dec-June 2022)
4. Educational Handouts (July-Sept 2022)
5. Public Meetings (Oct-Nov 2022)

Read the November 2022 Community Tree Pilot Project Recap.