Greens call for more trees in cities

The Green Party is calling for the establishment of a National Tree Project, which they say would “dramatically” increase the amount of trees in Ireland’s towns and cities.

Speaking of the need for tens of thousands more trees on our streets, Green Party Senator and former minister for nature, Malcolm Noonan said “The Green Party wants trees on every single suitable street in Ireland.”

“Our weather is becoming more and more unpredictable because of climate change. More trees will shield us against the heat, cool down our streets, cleaner air, and help to store rainwater.”

Senator Noonan said “planting tens of thousands of native trees in every street in Ireland is good for communities, good for nature, good for our mental health, and so much more-they can even provide us with food like these trees we planted in Kilkenny, where we planted mini orchards all around the city.”

Senator Noonan said that the programme should be funded through the Nature Restoration Fund.

Green Party Chair, North Inner City councillor Janet Horner added “everyone deserves to have nature on their doorstep. Parts of Dublin already benefit from urban tree planting, and we think that everyone should be able to enjoy this.”

She noted that similar projects are being rolled out in cities such as New York and Milan, and said “we think that Irish towns and cities could really benefit from more urban trees.”