Smiths Falls is changing how it measures the health of its urban tree canopy after staff found a strategic plan target calling for a five per cent annual increase was established without a verified baseline or defined method of measurement.
Director of Community Services Stephanie Clark told council Sept. 14 that the town now has a 2024 baseline showing tree canopy coverage at 23.25 per cent.
The updated assessment found canopy coverage declined from 23.77 per cent in 2019 to 23.25 per cent in 2024, representing a net loss of about 13 acres. Much of that decline occurred in areas experiencing development and redevelopment.
Clark’s report follows an updated canopy assessment presented to council by planner Richard Grant on Aug. 31.
Grant explained that an earlier assessment had overstated the town’s 2019 canopy coverage at approximately 35 per cent because overlapping tree crowns were counted more than once. Correcting the methodology brought the 2019 figure to 23.77 per cent, providing a comparable figure against which the 2024 canopy could be measured.
The town’s Tree Canopy and Vegetation Preservation and Enhancement Policy, adopted in 2021, sets a longer-term goal of achieving at least 30 per cent canopy coverage.
At the same time, the town has continued planting trees.
During the current council term, more than 450 trees have been planted, more than 800 seedlings distributed to residents and another 300-plus trees planted through the REAL pocket forest project at Hyland-Corbett Park.
Clark said newly planted trees take years to contribute significantly to measured canopy coverage. Rather than continuing with an annual percentage target, staff recommend using periodic canopy assessments to track changes over time.
During the discussion, Coun. Chris McGuire raised the issue of tracking the survival rate of newly planted trees, noting some planted in previous years have not survived.
Clark said the town recently planted eight oak trees along Ferrara Drive at the Cataraqui Trail and also gave some attention to the Vimy Oak at the cenotaph on Beckwith Street.
“We had our guys go down and give it a haircut and a shine,” Clark told Hometown News following the meeting. “We trimmed it up and it looks far less shaggy and much more like a tree.”
Coun. Jennifer Miller gave town staff a shoutout for their attention to the Vimy Oak.
The tree was planted May 18, 2017, following a student-led initiative at Smiths Falls District Collegiate Institute. It is descended from oaks linked to the Battle of Vimy Ridge.
Canadian soldier Leslie Miller collected acorns near his dugout in France while preparing for the Battle of Vimy Ridge in April 1917 and sent them home to Ontario. Miller survived the battle, but the oak trees around Vimy Ridge did not. Saplings descended from the acorns he sent home became known as Vimy Oaks.
Council received the report for information.
Keep connected to your community—Read the latest Smiths Falls news.
