Impact of Residential Intensification on Urban Forest in the Long Branch Neighbourhood, Toronto

The impact residential intensification has on tree canopy cover in urban landscapes is a pressing environmental issue. Trees have been widely recognized as important ecological features for climate change and are especially important in urban landscapes for their carbon sequestration capacity, cooling effects and improvement of air quality. However, in the City of Toronto, residential densification and the associated tree removals continue to be approved through the planning and development application process in spite of municipal tree protection policies. To understand the impacts of development approvals and the piecemeal land use planning approach to urban tree canopy, the Long Branch neighbourhood of Toronto was used as a case study to address three objectives. First, the extent of canopy loss across individual properties approved for redevelopment between 2012 and 2018 was analyzed using digitization of high-resolution images in Google Earth. The results showed that 56% of tree cover was lost on lots following redevelopment. Second, the condition of trees on redeveloped lots and adjacent properties was assessed using Neighbourwoods© field data from 2018 and 2019. The results showed no indication of stress on the trees inventoried, however further monitoring over time is recommended. Third, the yearly number of development applications and approvals, and the role of the active, engaged community in appealing approvals to prevent tree cover loss was examined. The high number of approved redevelopment projects in Long Branch have allowed for a reduction in the neighbourhood’s tree canopy. The community invests immense amounts of time into disputing redevelopment projects through the formalized municipal process, which is quite complex and lacks sufficient consideration of tree retention. Based on these findings, it is highly recommended that the City’s piecemeal land use planning process and its impact on tree canopy be reevaluated.