It’s no wonder Ealing is famous for its trees. Around 30,000 new trees and saplings have been planted in the borough since 2018 bringing the total up to nearly a quarter of a million.
And Ealing Council, for the second year in a row, has received international recognition for its high standards of tree management.
Climate action
Trees make Ealing more beautiful. They are also an important part of our local response to climate change. The council declared a climate emergency two years ago and as extreme weather events become more common, with hotter summers and more frequent periods of heavy rainfall, our trees are one of the ways we are adapting.
As well as colling down our streets and providing shade on hot days, trees help to filter pollution from the atmosphere making the air cleaner for all of us. They also absorb rainfall, reducing local flooding during heavy downpours, remove harmful carbon dioxide from the air and store it for years to come, as well as provide homes and shelter for local wildlife.
Ealing takes the care of its trees seriously and, for the second year in a row, has been given Tree Cities of the World status by the United Nations and the Arbor Day Foundation. This means that Ealing is part of an international network of cities, spanning the globe, who have been singled out for their dedication to caring for their urban woodlands.
30,000 new trees
Councillor Deirdre Costigan, deputy leader of Ealing Council and cabinet member for climate action, said: “In 2018, we promised to plant 30,000 new trees in Ealing. I’m pleased to say that, thanks to the hundreds of local volunteers working alongside us, and UK charity, Trees for Cities, we have reached our target.
“Our tree planting programme is really impressive. Over the last three years, we’ve created a nut orchard in Elthorne Park, worked with Trees for Cities to plant 373 trees and saplings on the Racecourse Estate, many of them fruit trees, and planted 15,000 trees and saplings in the new Greenford to Gurnell greenway.
“And we aren’t stopping here. We know how important trees are to making our borough colourful, beautiful and a good place to live and our tree nursery on Horsenden Hill is growing our new trees of the future. We are going to continue to make Ealing greener, so keep an eye out for ways that you can get involved.”
If you would like to join likeminded people who love Ealing and its green spaces, go to Do Something Good and follow the links to see the opportunities available.
