Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy

Thank you to all who participated in Phase 2 of public engagement. Public engagement opportunities were available from May 24 to June 22, 2022. Feedback is currently being considered and a summary of the engagement process will be posted online.

Public input will help the project team revise the draft Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy this summer. Council will review the recommended Strategy in late 2022.

Thank you to all who attended a Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy open house. If you were unable to attend, we encourage you to view the presentation, watch a recording of the open house, and provide your comments through the survey and comments tool. The survey and comments tool will be available until June 22, 2022.

The draft Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy is now available in the Document Library. The Strategy will guide the protection, preservation, and management of the city’s trees for the next 20 years. To learn more:

• Review the draft Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy
• Attend an online open house
• Explore data from the draft Strategy on this interactive page

We want to hear from you!

Your feedback will help guide us in prioritizing actions, finalizing the plan, and ensuring the city’s urban forest can grow into the future.

To provide feedback, you are invited to:

• Take the survey
• Leave a feedback in the comments tool
• Attend an online open house

Open House #1
Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022
Time: 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Format: Presentation followed by a question period
Register: Register here.

Open House #2
Date: Wednesday, June 15, 2022
Time: 2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Format: Presentation followed by a question period
Register: Register here.

The survey and comments tool will be available until June 22, 2022.

The State of the Urban Forest report is now available in the Document Library. The report presents an in-depth look at the current state of Winnipeg’s urban forest. A shorter summary is also available that provides an overview of the key findings from the report.

A draft Urban Forest Strategy will be developed with the help of the background information in the State of the Urban Forest report. The draft strategy will provide recommendations to maintain, preserve, and enhance the urban forest over the next 20 years. Public engagement on the draft strategy is expected to occur in early summer 2021.

The Phase 1 Public Engagement Summary is now available and provides an overview of the public input collected for the project. Please visit the Document Library to view the Phase 1 Public Engagement Summary.

Public input, along with findings from the review of the current state of Winnipeg’s urban forest will help the project team create a draft Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy. Phase 2 public engagement is expected to occur in the summer 2021 to gather feedback on the draft Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy.

Thank you to all who participated in phase 1 public engagement for the Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy. Feedback is currently being considered and a summary of the public engagement process will be posted in winter 2020/21. The deadline for the self-guided walking tours and virtual tours was extended to November 8, 2020 to provide more time to those who would like to participate.

The deadline for self-guided walking tours and virtual tours is extended to November 8, 2020 to provide more time to those who would like to participate. The survey, mapping tool, and discussion forum remain scheduled to close on November 1, 2020. Thank you to all who have already provided input for the Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy. Phase 2 of public engagement is planned for spring 2021.

Thank you to all who attended a Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy presentation on October 22 and October 23, 2020. If you were unable to attend, we encourage you to view the presentation slides and provide your comments through the survey, mapping tool, discussion forum, self-guided walking tour, or virtual tour.

Public engagement opportunities will be available until November 1, 2020.

We want to hear from you!

Public engagement for the Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy is now underway.

Visit the Get Involved! tab to:

• Take the survey
• Contribute to the mapping tool
• Participate in the discussion forum
• Attend an online presentation
• Take a self-guided walking tour or virtual tour*

Public engagement opportunities will be available until November 1, 2020.

*In-person walking tours were originally planned; however, Winnipeg has been elevated to Restricted (orange) in the Province of Manitoba's Pandemic Response System. In response, the City is cancelling in-person public engagement events.

Trees provide many important benefits, including cooling our streets in the summer, reducing rainwater runoff and air pollution, improving mental and physical health, and beautifying our city. But Winnipeg’s urban forest faces significant challenges from insects and disease, climate change, urban development, and resource strains.

While American elm and ash represent 26 percent and 33 percent of the public trees, respectively, both are under siege due to Dutch Elm Disease and the Emerald Ash Borer. The City’s capacity to maintain the urban forest is also challenged as resources struggle to keep pace with demand for disease management, urban development, tree removals, maintenance, and replanting. These combined challenges threaten the urban forest’s capacity to provide beneficial ecosystem services like climate control, improved air quality, rainwater interception, and habitat connectivity – key components of our city’s resilience amid climate change.

In response to a report on additional resources required for Dutch elm disease management (September 2017), ongoing preparation for Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) and the discovery of EAB in November 2017, on December 12, 2017, Council approved the Urban Forest Enhancement Capital Project which supports the creation of the Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy.

The Winnipeg Urban Forest Strategy project is an opportunity to establish a long-term vision for Winnipeg’s urban forest, and to develop clear guidance and measurable outcomes for the funding and levels of service required to sustain an ecosystem that responds to current and future challenges.