Explanation
Background: This ordinance authorizes the Director of the Recreation and Parks Department to modify an existing contract with Applied Geographics to provide professional services associated with the Urban Tree Canopy Assessment 2022 Project. The modification amount being authorized by this ordinance is $15,000.00.
Columbus faces many challenges today and over the coming decades. Trees are part of the solution. Trees help reduce urban stressors, cleaning our air, providing shade, intercepting stormwater, and more. The benefits urban trees provide is valued up to five times what it costs to maintain them. In Columbus, our trees provide $38 million in benefits each year. However, our tree canopy is vulnerable to threats from disease, pests, the changing climate and increased development. Also, the City is expecting to grow by 1 million residents in the coming decades. To improve our residents’ quality of life, The City of Columbus approved the Columbus Urban Forestry Master Plan (UFMP) in April 2021. The UFMP is the first Citywide, strategic plan to invest long-term in Columbus’ trees. Over the next decades, the UFMP will guide the entire Columbus community to prioritize, preserve and grow our tree canopy.
The UFMP has ambitious canopy goals requiring frequent benchmarking. The first and only Urban Tree Canopy Assessment of Columbus’ trees was based on 2013 data and found that 22% of Columbus is covered with trees. This canopy cover is lower than many of Columbus’ peer cities. The UFMP recommends obtaining and regularly updating key forestry data, including the Urban Tree Canopy Assessment. As part of UFMP implementation, Columbus needs an updated canopy assessment to measure change since 2013. Additionally, a more comprehensive assessment of the entire county, along with those municipalities neighboring Columbus, is critical to understanding the urban forest on a regional level.
By modifying this contract, the City will receive additional deliverabl...
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