Windsor-Essex needs faster progress on green space and tree cover, advocates say

This story is part one of Lay of the Land, a CBC Windsor series examining the state of green space throughout Windsor-Essex.

Officials have touted the Windsor-Essex region's improvements on green space and tree cover — but improvement isn't coming fast enough for some environmental advocates.

"Too slow, in my opinion," said Derek Coronado, co-ordinator of the Citizens Environment Alliance.

"The fact is, we're in a race here, basically. And we're losing that race right now. Because the climate is going to get worse, and what we need to do is build more resilience. And resilience includes more natural space."

"I have hope that we can do better. I'm not necessarily optimistic that we are going to do better," Coronado adds.

Coronado has reason for skepticism. Windsor-Essex is historically among the least forested areas in Canada.

The Essex Region Conservation Authority continues to give most of the region a failing grade when it comes to tree cover.

According to a watershed report card released in March of this year, only 5.7 per cent of the region has forest conditions.

ERCA says that's better than five years ago, when the figure was less than four per cent — the lowest in the country.

But it's only two or three points higher than an assessment by ERCA from 40 years ago.

In a 1983 report on environmentally significant areas of Windsor-Essex, ERCA described the region's lack of forest — less than three per cent at the time — as a "critical" situation.

"We are in a dual crisis: A biodiversity crisis, and a climate crisis. And we need to do this much faster," Coronado said. "We need to put more resources and more finances into the effort to expand green space and to protect habitat."

Like many environmental groups, the CEA has long argued for the importance of forested areas in addressing carbon dioxide, maintaining water quality, and dealing with heat.

ERCA and the CEA aren't the only organizations with a grim view of Windsor-Essex tree cover. According to Statistics Canada, our region had a 29 per cent reduction of green space from 2011 to 2019.

The study was based on examination and comparison of satellite images of Windsor-Essex over time.

This sudden greying of the region's surface area has been attributed to a variety of factors — from the emerald ash borer to rapid urban development.

Niharika Bandaru of the relatively new local environmental group Windsor of Change agrees that the study brings up a complex question: How to balance the need for development — especially development of housing — with the need for green space?

"People need affordable and attainable housing. But should it be at the expense of conservation, and tree cover, and urban forest cover?" Bandaru said.

"I don't think it should be at the cost of one or the other. There are triple bottomline approaches. The three Ps — people, profit, and planet. They need to coexist. And I encourage builders and developers to look more into that, as opposed to short-term rapid growth."

Formed in 2017, Windsor of Change is an example of millennials picking up the torch of environmental advocacy.

Through publications, awareness campaigns, and cleanup efforts, the group hopes to enlighten and empower the Windsor-Essex public to act on environmental issues.

"We really believe that an educated electoral base and an educated community propel our elected representatives to do more about these issues," Bandaru said.

And change is happening — slowly.

The City of Windsor's own assessment of its urban tree canopy estimated the municipality's total tree cover at 19 per cent in 2020.

Since then, the city has spent more than $4.3M to maintain and increase that figure, with over 2,000 trees planted yearly.

And, after more than a decade of debate, major strides have been made over the past two years to establish the Ojibway Prairie Complex and Ojibway Shores as a national urban park.

But big steps need to continue to happen if Windsor-Essex is to protect its green space and improve its tree cover, say those concerned about the issue.

"We are in a crisis. We have been for many years. The science is there to prove that it is a crisis," said Tecumseh Mayor Gary McNamara, whose environmental efforts won him the Ontario Member of the Year Award from the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative earlier this summer.

"That's the reality that we're faced (with) here today. And it's not something to say, 'Well, next year, it's going to be better.' It seems that every year, it's getting worse," McNamara said.