Tree canopy overview
Summary of indicator
| Indicator Name | Tree canopy |
| Indicator Type | Core |
| User Outcome | Link to nature |
Objective
To measure the percentage of tree cover across urban areas, which provides critical shade, drainage, air quality and wellbeing benefits.
Application guidance
Natural systems can complement both movement and place, such as tree canopies that help to reduce urban heat island effects, offering shade and providing visual amenity. Tree canopies can also contribute to improved air quality and wellbeing.
This indicator will support practitioners to understand the inequities of urban tree coverage across urban areas, which provides benefit not only to the community but also to reducing urban heat. Based on the outcomes of the assessment, practitioners can determine areas in need of preserving green infrastructure and/or repairing green networks by focusing on new canopy cover in areas of urban heat, low vegetations cover, and high walking potential.
Practitioners can use the percentage of tree cover metric to measure whether urban areas in NSW have sufficient tree canopy.
Metric
Related indicators
 | Amenity and Use |
 | Green and Blue |
 | Comfort and Safety |
Recommendation
To improve the accuracy of tree canopy coverage data in rural areas, up-to-date lidar data and imagery can be used to extract the tree coverage.
Metric in detail
Map
References
Department of Planning, Industry and Environment, Data workflow for an urban heat-green cover baseline assessment for the Sydney Metropolitan Area (2019).