Canberra, the tree city again in 2014: urban to nature reserves

Canberra has long been known as ‘the bush capital.’ Canberra, Australia’s capital, is a well-planned city with ample parks and natural bushland.

The Institute for Sustainable Futures at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) conducted a study of the proportion and types of land cover in 16 Australian cities (Canberra Weekly, July 30, 2014). It listed Canberra as Australia’s most tree friendly city – the city with the highest urban tree cover. Canberra is in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), a landlocked state. UTS found that ACT had 56% of tree cover, the highest proportion of tree cover of cities in across the country. In addition, ACT has 33% of ground and grass cover, 6% with shrubs, and only 5% of hard surfaces.

Urban tree cover is excellent for improving the native habitat and enhancing biodiversity with parks, gardens, nature reserves, and vegetated open spaces.

202020 Vision commissioned the UTS study as part of its mission to increase green spaces by 20% in urban areas by 2020.

www.202020vision.com.au/research

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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