Monday\u2019s tree-planting session came as part of a strategy in its second year that prioritizes putting new trees in the neighborhoods most vulnerable to extreme heat, rather than in response to ad hoc 311 requests, as had been done in years past.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And planting those trees took on a particular significance as the Mamdani administration on Tuesday released a plan<\/a> to expand the tree canopy to cover 30% of the city by 2040.<\/p>\n \u201cTo reach this 30% goal, it\u2019s going to take work from every actor in the entire city,\u201d said Jessica Einhorn, chief of forestry programs at the Department of Parks and Recreation. \u201cThis program planting trees, especially in the high [heat vulnerable] neighborhoods, is really critical towards that equity angle.\u201d<\/p>\n In those riskier areas, the tree canopy \u2014 or the area of the city currently covered by trees and their leaves \u2014 currently stands at 19%, compared to about 26% in others, city Chief Climate Officer Louise Yeung told the City Council in March. (Overall, tree canopy covers just over 23% of the boroughs according to the last count in 2021. That was after a net increase of 1.2% since 2017.)<\/p>\n Trees across the city serve more than an aesthetic purpose \u2014 they add to the health and resiliency of a neighborhood. Areas with a robust tree canopy and vegetation have shown to be slightly<\/a> to significantly<\/a> cooler compared to places where green space is scarce and pavement is plentiful. Trees also help to purify air and can reduce water runoff to mitigate flooding.\u00a0<\/p>\n And their value as heat-regulators will only increase in the near future.<\/p>\n By the 2040s \u2014 the due date for the 30% canopy goal \u2014 New York City\u2019s temperatures could be between nearly 3 and 6 degrees hotter due to the effects of climate change, according to the New York City Panel on Climate Change<\/a>. Heat is dangerous: it contributes to the deaths of over 500 New Yorkers<\/a> on average each year, with Black New Yorkers twice as likely to die compared to whites.<\/p>\n The city already experiences the urban heat island effect, meaning it\u2019s hotter<\/a> because of the density, pavement and tall buildings than elsewhere. But some areas are significantly greener and cooler than others, while other neighborhoods are more vulnerable to heat based on a combination of physical factors \u2014 like existing trees \u2014 and social considerations, like residents\u2019 income and access to air conditioning.<\/p>\n The Parks Department\u2019s tree-planting strategy, announced<\/a> in 2024, does away with the system where anyone can call 311 to ask for a new tree \u2014 except for the loophole New Yorkers can make a $1,800 donation<\/a> to do so, as previously reported by THE CITY.<\/p>\n The new system instead divides the city into more than 400 zones, planting trees in every viable place within a zone while removing stumps and dying trees.\u00a0<\/p>\n Each community board district will have a zone serviced every three years, and Parks plans to hit all zones every nine years<\/a>. (Here\u2019s a tentative schedule<\/a> of tree-planting locations.) The most heat-vulnerable neighborhoods are on track to be completed by the end of 2027, Yeung said.<\/p>\n Money Grows Trees<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s plan is the first time the city has set a target date for the goal of a 30% canopy. But critically, the money to pay for it has not been committed.<\/p>\n \u201cMany of the actions in the plan rely on existing program budgets and aim to ensure that we are spending smarter,\u201d City Hall spokesperson Jessica Woolford said in a statement. \u201cWe are creatively leveraging funds from government and private sources to advance our shared goals.\u201d<\/p>\n City Hall did not offer its own estimate for the cost. But according to a 2022 estimate<\/a> from a local environmental advocacy group, it would cost about $500 million to plant a million trees and achieve its canopy goal.<\/p>\n \u201cThe plan is great, but what comes after is the most critical part,\u201d said Shravanthi Kanekal, a resiliency planner at the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance. \u201cIt\u2019s going to signal a whole lot to see how much they dedicate funding to the plan.\u201d<\/p>\n Though as a candidate, Mamdani promised to dedicate 1% of the budget to the Department of Parks and Recreation, his preliminary budget this year proposed spending just half of that<\/a> \u2014 cutting nearly $34 million from the department\u2019s budget in the current fiscal year.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m really glad to see the city set a goal of 2040, and I think what we\u2019ve been looking to is how to further accelerate achieving that goal,\u201d said Tami Lin-Moges, director of the cities program at the Nature Conservancy. \u201cBut obviously that really relies on increased investments. \u2026 Investing in parks and the urban forest is an investment in livability in New York City.\u201d<\/p>\n Greening the city so almost a third of it has tree canopy will require money, manpower and shoring up interest from New Yorkers, said Simon Skinner, chief of programs and operations at the New York Restoration Project.<\/p>\n![\"Parks](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/042026_parks_tree_plant-13.jpg\")
Parks Department workers water newly-planted trees on an eastern Queens residential block, April 20, 2026. Credit: Ben Fractenberg\/THE CITY<\/p>\n![\"Parks](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/042026_parks_tree_plant-6.jpg\")
Parks Department worker David Bromley plants a tree in Cambria Heights, Queens, April 20, 2026. Credit: Ben Fractenberg\/THE CITY<\/p>\n
![\"Cherry](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/042026_parks_tree_plant-7.jpg\")
Cherry blossoms bloom in eastern Queens, April 20, 2026. Credit: Ben Fractenberg\/THE CITY<\/p>\n