Wollongong City Council Acting Lord Mayor Linda Campbell, Planning Minister Paul Scully and WCC’s Mae Gibbeson, Paul Tracey and Nikki Romanczukiewicz. Photo: Keeli Dyson.
Canopies of tree cover to shade suburbs exposed to severe heat and sunlight will soon be growing in streets and parks across the Illawarra thanks to an almost $580,000 cash injection into greening projects.
As housing development and the region’s population is set to boom, a boost in greenery is set to improve the liveability of the Illawarra and ensure the benefits of nature are not lost in the process.
The NSW Government’s Greening our City program has extended to include the Illawarra and Shoalhaven for the first time, with more than $480,000 granted to Wollongong City Council’s Urban Greening Program: Green the Gong.
“These areas are part of the heavy lifting on our housing reforms and our planning reforms delivering more homes for people, but as we deliver more homes we know that we’ve got to have the urban canopy to match,” Planning Minister and Wollongong MP Paul Scully said.
“It will certainly help us reach our target which is to have a 35 per cent green canopy coverage; we’re currently at about 27 per cent so we’ve been doing quite well but this is going to help us,” Acting Lord Mayor Linda Campbell said.
“And that means that our streets, our active pathways and where people walk will have access to shade and just a more pleasant environment.”
It will see more trees delivered in streets and parks – varying in size and impact – and particularly in areas with less than 20 per cent canopy coverage, to improve air quality and importantly reduce the impact of heat.
“Anyone that’s been walking around over the last few weeks at the peak of summer knows the relief you get when you’re standing under the shade of a tree,” Minister Scully said. “We won’t pretend that there aren’t areas that need that support, that’s why we’re doing this, to make sure that it improves liveability but also increases climate resilience.
“Of course we look for them to grow over time but we know that we’ve got to make sure that we’ve got semi-mature and mature trees coming through, so they provide some immediate coverage.
“Research shows that shaded areas can be up to 25 degrees cooler than unshaded areas, so this is a great investment in the future of a green city.”
“They’ll be all over the city but there will be a focus on the areas where we have a low canopy coverage and that’s more the southern suburbs and places like Lake Heights and Port Kembla and out here at Dapto,” Cr Campbell said.
More than $95,000 has also been granted to Shellharbour to enhance Warilla’s Keith Fletcher Park with native trees, understorey vegetation, tiny forests and new education features.
“This Greening our City funding gives the Shellharbour region a chance to strengthen climate and environmental resilience in areas where it’s needed most,” Shellharbour MP Anna Watson said.
“More trees and green spaces in our region will create more enjoyable public places for everyone to relax and connect with nature — now and for years to come.”
Shoalhaven Council also received a $488,000 boost as part of the program which was awarded to 24 councils across the state totalling almost $10 million.
“The whole program will deliver 24,000 trees,” Minister Scully said. “That is 6000 trees more than are currently in Central Park in New York.”
For more information about the Greening our City grant visit the NSW Government website, or to learn more about Green the Gong visit the Wollongong City Council website.
