Past Project
Gateway Cities Tree Canopy Improvement Project
From 2020 to 2022, Gateway Cities Tree Canopy Improvement Program aims to enhance access to tree canopies in a number of underserved cities along the transportation corridor from Long Beach Harbor to Downtown LA that are facing notable environmental health disparities. Going further than many programs with a similar focus, we place a strong emphasis on community input to guide the prioritization of neighborhoods for our tree-planting campaigns. Utilizing a combination of surveys and virtual town hall sessions, residents have actively participated by ranking various factors that determine the urgency of tree planting, including the existing tree canopy coverage in their neighborhoods, proximity to essential amenities like bus stops, and vulnerability to extreme heat. These factors were translated into measurable metrics at the parcel level, subsequently amalgamated and weighted based on the preferences of the residents.Â
Community engagement activities were then held in each participating city to plant trees on public land and distribute trees to residents in the prioritized parcels for free. This initiative was made possible by joint forces from a local NGO (TreePeople), Gateway Cities Council of Governments, and three local universities (UCLA, Loyola Marymount University, and Chapman University) under the support of Edison International and CAL FIRE.
This is a document summarizing the background, purpose, approach, and outcome of Gateway Cities Tree Canopy Improvement Project.
Los Angeles County Map Viewer
The Los Angeles Tree Canopy Map Viewers provide a one-stop-shop to visualize the existing and possible tree canopy coverage land from parcel to city level in Los Angeles County. Tree canopy data were derived from Los Angeles County's LiDAR data acquisition program (LARIAC).
The video on the left provides a walk-through of both the Basic and the Advanced Map Viewer.
This work was supported by Edison International and CAL FIRE. Here is a StoryMap detailing the purpose, approach, and outcome of this project.