Tree planting figures revealed across the capital
As National Tree Planting Week gets underway figures released today reveal that within the last eight years the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan has funded the planting of more than 555,000 trees in London. This is nearly 378,000 more than under the previous mayor.
The greening of London’s streets is vital for the health and wellbeing of Londoners as it will help to keep London cool as the UK faces higher temperatures and more extreme weather conditions due to the climate emergency.
The figures released today are thanks to a £30 million investment in green spaces and tree planting which has been pioneered by the Mayor’s Environment Strategy and London Plan. Both aim to prevent nature depletion and increase biodiversity and green space across the city.
The mayor has also invested in more than 350 community projects, ensuring that local communities are involved in the design and ownership of their green spaces.
Later this week, London Assembly Member Leonie Cooper AM will visit Kew Gardens where she will meet with horticulturists to hear more about Kew’s environmental research and programme of activity that is helping the environment and improving Londoners’ health.
Kew scientists and horticulturists have been involved in global research to understand and protect biodiversity and to discover sustainable solutions to benefit London and beyond.
Leonie Cooper AM, London Assembly Member, Labour Spokesperson for Environment said:
“Planting so many trees in such a short space of time is a fantastic achievement and testament to how the Mayor of London is helping Londoners’ to enjoy healthier lives.
“The greening of London’s streets is not only important to the appearance of local communities, it’s essential to help create a healthy city which helps to clean our air, cool our city and reduce the risk of flooding.”
Kevin Martin, Head of Tree Collections at Kew Gardens said:
"We are already witnessing the effects of climate change here in the UK, and planting the right trees in the right locations is essential to mitigate these impacts. This is particularly critical in urban areas such as London, where the built environment exacerbates heat retention to create an ‘urban heat island effect’.
"The integration of trees and woody shrubs into town planning is essential as we face an increasing frequency of extreme weather events. They serve as nature’s air conditioning, reducing the consequences of this urban heat island effect for both people and wider ecosystems. At RBG Kew, we are conducting assessments to identify the most suitable tree species to plant for optimal results over the next 50 to 100 years."
Notes to editors
Notes to editors
- Leonie Cooper AM is the London Assembly Member for Merton and Wandsworth.
- The Tree planting data comes from a Mayoral question which was posed on 17 September 2024 by London Assembly Member Leonie Cooper AM
GLA funded tree planting during Sadiq Khan’s mayoral term 2016-2024 by borough and year
Records on tree planting are incomplete and inconsistent before the current mayoralty. The records indicate that overall, during this time the GLA (and TfL) funded the planting of around 177,558 trees. Other partners in the RE:LEAF partnership funded additional trees, however the records are unclear as to how many were funded in addition to the GLA-funded trees. The records indicate that the data are incomplete and that there is likely to be significant double counting, amongst other issues. A breakdown of GLA-funded trees by borough and year can be found in the attached table (note: constituency level data do not exist).
GLA funded tree planting during Boris Johnson’s mayoral term 2008-2016 by borough and year
Notes within internal records accompanying these figures indicate that they include double counting and incomplete entries, so while these are the best representation available of planting during this time, they should not be considered accurate.