When I moved here, the first local book I read was former councillor Rod Day’s Inside West Vancouver: People, Politics, and Planning since 1912. Woven into Day’s historical narrative was story upon story of the fight for the urban forest and a recognition of how trees make this place special.
It was no small surprise, then, to read the draft Urban Forest Management Plan submitted to council this week and conclude the district isn’t really walking the talk. Problem after problem after problem, and poor mark after poor mark after poor mark, highlight the report.
It is as if West Van has taken one of its most defining features for granted. There is not abject neglect so much as the minimum done so as not to be accused of it. The report leaves no doubt that it’s time to step up.
The list of failing grades in the roughly 100-page report from Diamond Head Consulting Ltd. would take more than this column to itemize. A few: we don’t as a district plant and replace trees adequately, we don’t have a tree risk strategy, we don’t properly co-operate with utility companies to protect and prune district trees, we don’t have an accurate inventory of trees in our busiest zones, we don’t have a municipality-wide plan and we aren’t resourced to accommodate any kind of plan.
Taken as a whole, the picture painted is of a government that took its eyes off the ball just when it needed more than ever to be in the game. This council has inherited a serious, urgent challenge.
The urban forest is defined as the canopy in the land below the 1,200-foot elevation. The district estimated in 2019 that its economic benefit exceeds $600 million, when you consider how it helps clean and filter water, manages stormwater, cleans air, sequesters carbon, provides habitat for animals and insects and an environment for recreation. There are doubtless benefits to come from the urban forest as the district attempts to reach its ambitious targets of 30-per-cent reductions in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and their elimination by 2050.
What cannot be calculated is the urban forest’s cultural esthetic, about which we can barely hazard a guesstimate – you’d have to be numbed to your senses to not appreciate it. The public engagement to date on the plan strongly appreciates it, though, and the people of West Vancouver want more.
It ought to be worrisome that something the public cares about cannot be fulfilled, but the report implies that’s what everyone needs to accept. It merely counsels a “no-net-loss” strategy in the years ahead (52 per cent canopy in 15 years, up from today’s 51 per cent). That’s hardly satisfying as we encounter more evidence of climate change through extreme weather episodes.
Even that scenario carries challenging demands: more tree protection during development, more replacement on redevelopment sites, and more tree planting in commercial zones. It would require one-quarter of the canopy cover to be replaced when properties are redeveloped, with the remaining three-quarters planted in parks or streets when it can’t be accommodated on the properties themselves.
The most intriguing no-net-loss requirement would be a voluntary planting campaign by property owners of about 320 trees a year for the next 15 years. If we wanted to reach even a 54 per cent level, those 320 would need to be 2,320 privately planted trees a year – uh, good luck on that.
Which brings us to the money. Of the 58 prescriptions for the next 15 years, very few can be delivered within the existing budget, and quite a few will be six-figure expenditures.
Will the district, for instance, provide incentives for property owners to plant? Will it improve upon the spartan resources to manage canopy on public lands? Will it impose further restrictions on tree-cutting? Will it demand more of developers than it has to date?
Any plan worth the effort will come with a significant invoice. In this council’s current context, that’s a big ask.
Mayor Mark Sager, who thrives on hastened meetings, suddenly scuppered a scheduled presentation Monday of the report to council, which green-lit a second wave of public engagement, with no timeline. Coun. Nora Gambioli urged it be done “sooner than later.”
Kirk LaPointe is publisher and executive editor of BIV as well as vice-president, editorial, Glacier Media Group, the North Shore News’ parent company. He is also a West Vancouverite.
