Metro Vancouver’s tree canopy: Under threat like never before

From an airplane, Metro Vancouver looks rather green.

As I flew back to this West Coast region from less lush parts of the world, I knew I was not alone in enjoying looking down on the relative abundance of trees.

Largely because of our temperate climate, Metro — population 3.1 million — has had a cherished canopy of trees. They’re on boulevards, private property and in parks. Thirty-one per cent of Metro’s urban landscape is covered with trees.

That compares with 15 per cent of San Francisco, 10 per cent of Paris, 18 per cent of Shanghai, 21 per cent of London, England, and eight per cent of Calgary.

Since people love trees, politicians like promising more of them. But the portion of Metro blanketed by trees is under threat like never before — mostly from elevated housing construction