Winnipeg Free Press
Challenge remains sapling-sized success
Only 990,850 more trees to go.
As part of a project to add one million trees to Winnipeg by 2040, just 9,150 trees have been planted.
Kamila Konieczny photo
Less than 10,000 trees have been planted over the last year as part of Winnipeg’s Million Tree Challenge.
Trees Winnipeg, which is overseeing the Million Tree Challenge, shared that figure on Wednesday.
Mayor Brian Bowman announced the initiative in September 2019, with a target to add one million trees by the time Winnipeg’s population reaches one million people.
The mayor said the work done so far is impressive, given that pandemic health restrictions have prevented mass tree-planting efforts for many months.
WINNIPEG The City of Winnipeg has officially launched a program aimed at adding to the city’s tree canopy in a big way. On Wednesday, the city marked the official start to the public awareness and education campaign for the Million Tree Challenge Winnipeg (MTC) – an initiative that Mayor Brian Bowman first introduced in 2019. The program calls on residents, businesses and not-for-profit agencies to plant one million trees on private and public property over the next 20 years. “When I introduced the idea for the Million Tree Challenge back in 2019 it was to protect and expand our city’s immense tree canopy, which is a source of great pride for so many Winnipeggers,” Bowman said.
Winnipeg Free Press Save to Read Later
Trees Winnipeg, which considers itself the voice of Winnipeg’s trees, has launched a campaign to renew the effort to save Winnipeg’s rapidly dropping American elm population. (Mike Sudoma / Winnipeg Free Press)
In a city that treasures its lush summer canopy, the loss of 33,000 elm trees since 2016 has been a serious blow.
In a city that treasures its lush summer canopy, the loss of 33,000 elm trees since 2016 has been a serious blow.
In neighbourhoods such as Wolseley, the West End and Glenelm, these towering icons are being felled by disease.
To put it in perspective, if each block had 10 elms, that would amount to 3,300 blocks being stripped of their foliage because of the city’s losing battle against Dutch elm disease.