Counting on … day 168

11th September 2024

Trees are just as important in urban as in rural areas: “They have a huge impact on local wildlife, mental and physical health, and pollution levels, while making the places we live in more beautiful.” The Woodland Trust (1) 

In London there are estimated to be 8,421,000 trees (2), whilst globally urban trees whilst covering only 2% of the land, comprise  about 8% of the world’s tree diversity with 10 billion trees of more than 100 types. (3) 

Looking after – and indeed expanding – these urban forests is clearly important for biodiversity.

1. https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/habitats/urban-trees-and-woodland/

(2) Rogers, K., Sarcre, K., Goodenough, J. & Doick, K. Valuing London’s Urban Forest: Results of the London i-Tree Eco Project. (Treeconomics, London, 2015)

(3) https://unece.org/sites/default/files/2024-05/Biodiversity_infographic_final.pdf