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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 1d

Wise words to think about and act on.

KOJAMF🤘🖤🤘 @kojamf.bsky.social · 3d

Dr. Jane Goodall filmed an interview with Netflix in March 2025 that she understood would only be released after her death.

Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 3d

Bellingham "Despite its beauty, Samish Crest Open Space faces threats from a growing population. I have spent much time contemplating how to balance protecting wildlife corridors, trails, and scenic views with the need for more housing. ... I believe it is possible to achieve both objectives."

The Salish Current @salish-current.org · 9d

Samish Crest is under threat...again.

This irreplaceable forest, home to deer, bobcats, owls, cougars, and centuries-old trees, could be lost to development.

salish-current.org/2025/09/29/b...

Bellingham’s beautiful forest

Commentary: The Samish Crest Open Space is home to deer, bobcats, coyotes, cougars, a variety of birds and more. This forest is deeply spiritual to me.

salish-current.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 3d

Bellevue, WA - a Northwest Urban city striving for 40% tree canopy cover. See more details here.

Op-Ed: Bellevue’s New Tree Protections Are a Needed Step Forward » The Urbanist

# Bellevue recently enacted a bevvy of protections intended to stem the tide of tree canopy loss in suburban residential neighborhoods. It's an important step toward achieving the goal of exceeding 40...

www.theurbanist.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 11d

"...research published in The Lancet has found that increasing tree cover in European cities to 30 percent could have reduced premature deaths from urban heat islands by 40 percent."

Urban Trees Could Reduce Summer Heat Deaths by 40 Percent

New research published in The Lancet has found that increasing tree cover in European cities to 30 percent could have reduced premature deaths from urban heat islands by 40 percent. Currently, the …

dirt.asla.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 18d

"When developers look to clear-cut residential lots to put in more housing, they often point to street trees as a viable alternative to keeping the city green.
But Seattle can’t accomplish its own tree canopy goals without preserving and protecting existing trees on private properties."

Make it One Seattle, full of trees, in Comprehensive Plan | Editorial

A street tree study shows planting in the right of way won't get Seattle to its goal of 30% tree canopy. The city must protect trees in the Comprehensive Plan.

www.seattletimes.com

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

TreesCharlotte simple on the ground temperature test shows an 11 F degree temperature difference between open ground space with no tree cover and under trees. Why trees in neighborhoods where people live can have multiple health benefits.

Reducing Urban Heat with Trees

YouTube video by TreesCharlotte

www.youtube.com

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

A "basic tree protection area" that can not be modified during development is what is killing trees. It is contrary to guidelines issued by the International Society of Arboriculture. One inch tree diameter equals 1 foot of radius of basic tree protection area is a made loophole by Master Builders.

Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 22d

That idea is good in the abstract. The specific proposals they endorse undermine the ability to build housing, and thus, will kill off the trees they claim to want to protect.

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

The State Legislature has passed HB 1110 and requires cities over 75,000 to allow 4 plexes & 6 plexes on all residential lots. So that is no longer an issue. The question is how you do that. TreePAC supports incentives for stacked flats (build up) on all lots as well as common walls on row houses.

Alex ITMFA @ahym666.bsky.social · 21d

can you give an example of tree pac actually actively supporting increasing housing

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

This was a post from 2016 and is no longer the policy of TreePAC. A different Chair headed up TreePAC at that time and the board had a different membership composition. Tree PAC currently supports building needed housing and protecting trees. Build up & consolidate, not spread out in separate units.

Mike Eliason @holz-bau.bsky.social · 21d

they opposed seattle's middling ADU lege, claimed it would have 'major environmental repercussions'

🤪

treepac.org/seattle-time...

Seattle Times: Ruling calls bluff on Seattle’s misguided housing policy on backyard cottages | TreePAC

treepac.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

This was a post from 2016 and has not been the position of TreePAC for years. Current mailing "We believe that we can build more needed housing at the same time we strive to to protect and grow our tree canopy. ...Support stacked flats on all lots and build housing units with common walls.

Mike Eliason @holz-bau.bsky.social · 21d

they opposed seattle's middling ADU lege, claimed it would have 'major environmental repercussions'

🤪

treepac.org/seattle-time...

Seattle Times: Ruling calls bluff on Seattle’s misguided housing policy on backyard cottages | TreePAC

treepac.org

Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

People had only one minute to speak and there are over 100 possible amendments. Speakers prioritize one or two issues. The legislature already with HB 1110 requires large cities like Seattle to allow building a minimum of 4 housing units and up to 6 per lot in residential zones. That's decided.

Mike Eliason @holz-bau.bsky.social · 22d

we all agree on this

but that's not at all what amendment 102 does

bsky.app/profile/holz...

Mike Eliason @holz-bau.bsky.social · 23d

it's telling that almost no one who supported CM rivera's tree bills (93 & 102) actually expressed support for housing as well

but there's another thing i want to point out with amendment 102.

this is so poorly written it's going to have severe unintended (or perhaps intended) consequences.

Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

And how would it accelerate tree loss? The basic tree protection area loophole allows most trees, particularly large ones, to be removed by developers & not how the International Society of Arboriculture describes tree protection areas as being able to be modified for tree species & site conditions.

Robert Cruickshank @robertcruickshank.com · 21d

That comment of yours does not actually address the specific issues people have flagged with the amendment itself, which as I and others see it, will probably accelerate rather than slow tree loss in our city.

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

TreePAC and Friends of Seattle's Urban Forest have repeatedly supported both meeting increased housing needs and also saving and planting trees. We are opposed to clearcutting lots when we can build stacked flats on all size lots and building with common walls like Oregon allows and save trees.

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

Amendment 102 is not poorly written but removes the Master Builder's loophole they got in the 2023 Tree Protection Ordinance update that says "the basic tree protection area can not be reduced" during development which lets almost all trees be removed on lots.

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 21d

Article in Lancet on value of urban trees. - “planting urban trees offers an important opportunity to mitigate high temperatures and, compared with other strategies, is relatively simple and cost-effective to implement.”

Urban Trees Could Reduce Summer Heat Deaths by 40 Percent

New research published in The Lancet has found that increasing tree cover in European cities to 30 percent could have reduced premature deaths from urban heat islands by 40 percent. Currently, the …

dirt.asla.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 22d

You can have more space for trees and still have the same space for needed housing by building up with stacked flats instead of spreading out covering the whole lot. You can also build with shared walls rather than separate housing units covering a lot. Oregon advocates for this type of housing.

Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 22d

Trees are part of the urban forest. A healthy urban forest has a mixture of tree species and ages, understory, and provides a multitude of environmental and public health services in a neighborhood. Trees help reduce stormwater runoff which reduces pollution to Puget Sound and Lake Washington.

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 22d

Madrone tree in Seattle. It naturally sheds its thin, reddish-brown bark as an evolutionary defense against fungi, mosses, lichens, & insects that can harm the tree. The peeling reveals smooth, greenish bark underneath, which then photosynthesizes & turns red as it is exposed to sunlight.

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Reposted by Friends of Urban Forests

Lane @lanethebot.bsky.social · 22d

Living on the hill is fun 🌳 #City #Trees #PNW

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · 23d

This is the consequence of developers inserting amendments into a Seattle Tree Protection Ordinance update 2 years ago that greatly increased their ability to clearcut most lots to increase housing density. Cities can both build more housing and save trees with better site planning and coordination.

Seattle developers cutting trees faster under protection law

Mayor Harrell promised law would get Seattle “back on track,” but new street-tree planting data raises doubts

www.investigatewest.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · Sep 8

"The extreme heat isn't just uncomfortable; it's the top cause of weather-related fatalities nationwide. According to a New York City mortality report, extreme heat kills an average of 350 New Yorkers each year."
Planting more trees can help reduce heat islands in urban areas.

Green spaces key to combating record heat in marginalized communities

Experts say planting more trees and creating green spaces can help against record heat being experienced in many communities.

www.myjournalcourier.com

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · Sep 8

Increased development in Seattle neighborhood residential zones will allow 4 - 6 housing units on a single lot, increasing significantly tree loss at the same time Seattle has a goal to increase tree canopy to 30%. Current tree ordinance unfortunately allows developers to remove most trees on lots.

Seattle’s long-neglected tree canopy is on a collision course with development

Tawny Bates knows the trees in her neighborhood well. She points them out as she walks down the street on a recent afternoon — the big leaf maple, a chestnut, a willow, a blue spruce. These towering t...

www.investigatewest.org

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · Sep 2

CDC following no scientific or medical regimen. Facts no longer matter. Scientific and medical data no longer matter. Just how crazy the Trump GOP MAGA Cult is. For example, the fewer people who get COVID or measles shots, the more people who can get sick and expose you and others.

Christopher Webb @cwebbonline.com · Aug 29

I’m not sharing this to scare people—though it’s fucking terrifying. I’m sharing it because we all need to be on guard.

We won’t be getting reliable data from the CDC anymore. Worse, the guidance could be harmful.

RFK Jr. has no medical training, no scientific background…

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Reposted by Friends of Urban Forests

ClimateChangePost @climatechangepost.bsky.social · Aug 8

#climatechangepost: North American forests have burned more often in the past, but the impacts are now greater www.climatechangepost.com/news/north-a...

Explore this gift article from The New York Times. You can read it for free without a subscription. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/06/c...

Washington State Braces for ‘Inevitable’ Megafire. Climate Change May Bring It Sooner.

www.nytimes.com

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Friends of Urban Forests @urbanforests.bsky.social · Aug 21

"Summer heat is not felt equally. Trees are one reason why.
A new online tool, developed by conservation nonprofit American Forests and the Washington Department of Natural Resources, lets Washington residents explore where those inequities exist. It covers urban areas across the state."

How does your neighborhood rank for ‘tree equity’? Check this map

A new mapping tool lets you compare tree canopies across urban areas in Washington state.

www.seattletimes.com

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