The City of Greenbelt is proud to have been designated as a Tree City USA city for the past 22 years.

The Qualification Process

To qualify as a Tree City USA community, a town or city must meet four standards established by The Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters:

• A tree board or department
• A tree care ordinance
• A community forestry program with an annual budget of at least $2 per capita
• An Arbor Day observance and proclamation

These standards were established to ensure that every qualifying community would have a viable tree management plan and program. It is important to note that they were also designed so that no community would be excluded because of size.

Greenbelt's Tree Canopy

City operations focus on the tree canopy, which is currently at 62%. A few years ago, the Public Works department completed their street-tree master plan to identify gaps in the street tree canopy and improve on those gaps. Goals were set and met.

The city is also participating in the new state program to measure and improve tree canopy. Recent surveys show Greenbelt as having one of the highest percentages of tree canopies in the region. The Adopt-a-Tree program in the city is as always, alive and flourishing.