Trees & Fall Cleanup

posted September 16, 2023 - 10:52pm

Hola!

We all value trees around the city, and the city recognizes the need to increase the tree canopy. Trees are a critical part of our ecosystem, promoting health and sustainability. Trees are also an essential part of the city's infrastructure and planning.

Three main areas impacted by trees are:

Public Spaces/Streets (Forestry)
Recreation (Parks)
Stormwater (Engineering)

How do we prioritize between trees and the functional areas that keep the city safe and healthy? Reviewing the Complete Green Streets (CGS) Guide, will help put this question into perspective. In essence, putting people first is at the core of the guide. Prioritizing access to public transportation, ensuring optimal stormwater infrastructure and green spaces are safe and welcoming to all.

Multiple city agencies manage these priorities, the table below shows the scope, responsibilities, and authority of each agency.

Agency	Streets and Urban Forestry – City Forester	Parks	Engineering
Scope	The City of Madison – Forestry is organizationally housed within the Streets Division and led by the City Forester.	The Parks Division is responsible for tree planting, maintenance, and removal throughout the City of Madison parks system.	Trees within stormwater utility lands are overseen by the Stormwater Utility. The trees in these corridors are maintained as part of the stormwater infrastructure and funded through Stormwater Utility (SWU) related fees and charges.
Responsibilities	The primary management role and authority is for approximately 100,000 terrace trees within the municipal right-of-way, typically located between the sidewalk and curb. Terrace trees are managed to maximize canopy benefits while limiting risk to public safety. This process begins at the time of planting, when: Forestry conducts a site assessment with consideration of the conditions, growing space, and utilities. Large canopy species are preferred to maximize future canopy benefits. Increasing intra-block species diversity is a long-term goal and directly influences species selection for new plantings. Trees are regularly pruned on a scheduled cycle and will be removed/replaced when necessary. Forestry staff respond 24/7 to tree-related emergencies in addition to participating in city-wide snow/ice removal operations.	The urban forest is crucial for ensuring: climate resilience, and the Parks Land Management Plan includes a section specific to the care and maintenance of trees within the parks. Parks’ tree maintenance is categorized: to include specific support for individual trees groves woodlands woodland edges In supporting these areas, Parks works to maintain: tree health ensure species diversity and regeneration of the urban forest provide habitat for insects and small mammals control invasive plant populations.	Trees are part of the larger vegetation management and green infrastructure within the SWU. Distributed Green Infrastructure is part of the SWU plan and vision to improve water quality and reduce flooding. Vegetation within SWU lands is managed to stabilize slopes to minimize soil erosion, increase stormwater infiltration improving water quality, and providing flood storage areas.
Authority	Forestry maintains approximately 40 professional staff with many holding industry credentials for arboriculture expertise and tree risk assessment.	The Parks Division works collaboratively with the City Forester on recommendations for the Parks Division, but Parks maintains final authority.	The City Forester may provide recommendations to the Engineering Division, but does not oversee tree management within these areas.
Additional Resources	Urban Forestry Task Report	2023 Adopted Plan	Stormwater Utility

***Thanks to our new City Forester, Ian Brown for providing the information in the above table.

IMPORTANT UPCOMING SERVICES

Mark your calendars, checkout the video and the links to learn more about streets services.



How to Prepare Yard Waste for Pick-Up - YouTube	Leaf & Yard Waste Collection - Collection & Recycling - Streets & Recycling - City of Madison, Wisconsin

Composting - Programs & Services - Streets & Recycling - City of Madison, Wisconsin	Recycling - Streets & Recycling - City of Madison, Wisconsin