Dear editor,

Courtenay council should be commended for enacting a new and improved tree bylaw for the city. Retaining mature trees along with replanting will help sustain the city鈥檚 urban forests and the benefits they provide the community.

Trees provide natural storm water management, help clean air by removing particulates, save on heating and air conditioning costs, and store carbon. They contribute to the overall quality of life, provide green space and beautify the city.

One of the most important benefits that trees provide is to help maintain water balance.

When we pave over natural areas and capture rainwater we direct it into our publicly owned stormwater management infrastructure. Courtenay, like all other cities, is facing huge costs to maintain and replace this aging infrastructure. The urban forest is an important ecological asset that can play a role in helping to solve this problem.

A mature douglas fir tree captures and transpires 35 per cent of precipitation before it hits the ground. Keeping groves of trees in new developments can offer the opportunity to discharge stormwater directly into forested areas. This helps reduce stormwater system costs (born by city taxpayers), and benefits our local streams and estuary.

When stormwater is discharged into the ground it sustains subsurface flows and recharges aquifers. Groundwater is much cleaner than stormwater that runs off roofs, parking lots and roads into pipes and then directly into our local streams. Groundwater flows in winter are slower, and in summer more water is available to flow into streams to sustain fish and other species.

With large undeveloped forested areas in line for future development, an urban forest strategy should now be undertaken to determine the status and benefits of Courtenay鈥檚 urban forest. City council has received the support of the Development and Construction Association and the CV Conservation Partnership to initiate such a strategy. An urban forest strategy will provide valuable information for planning Courtenay鈥檚 future.

The ever-increasing costs associated with maintaining and replacing infrastructure is unsustainable. Land use planning and development practices must be modernized to account for and protect natural assets, like the urban forest, that can relieve the pressure on stormwater infrastructure.

The City鈥檚 improved tree bylaw is a good start to help reset development in the city.

David Stapley,

Program Manager,

Comox Valley Conservation Partnership