Measuring our Urban Canopy

Tree canopy is the layer of leaves, branches, and stems of trees that cover the ground when viewed from above. Tree canopy provides many benefits like:

  • Improving air and water quality

  • Mitigating rainfall runoff and flooding

  • Reducing building energy use

  • Improving mental health and social well-being

  • Lowering noise impacts from busy streets

  • Providing habitats for wildlife

  • Enhancing property values

Measuring the urban canopy can help a community understand progress made towards reforestation. Urban Canopy measurements are a lagging indicator because it takes time for trees planted today to grow and contribute to our canopy in the future. It is important to measure and track other indicators, like new plantings and management of existing trees to get the whole picture of urban forestry in Cleveland.

The Cleveland Tree Coalition is working with partners to evaluate and measure the impact we collectively have.

Trees and a bioswale at E. 75th and Dell Ave.

Local Data

Through the CTC, local Cuyahoga County partners conduct regular assessments of the tree canopy cover in Cuyahoga County. This data is collected using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data. Experts at the Cuyahoga County Planning Commission maintain the database. Canopy data is a measure of leaf cover/ It’s just one way we can track progress over time.

Cuyahoga County Partners conducted a Tree Canopy Assessment in 2014 and a Tree Canopy Assessment update in 2019. The next update is expected by 2029.

The City of Cleveland tracks data on tree concerns through their Open Data portal. You can also access data on air quality around the city. Both of these metrics can help us to understand what is happening within the City when it comes to trees. The CTC may use tree concern data from the 3-1-1 Service Request Dashboard to understand which areas of the City are focused in on trees. The CTC may use air quality monitoring data to understand where future trees may be needed.

National Data

In 2024, the Arbor Day Foundation, PlanIT Geo, and the USDA Forest Service published a national dataset capturing landcover and tree canopy cover in major metropolitan areas across the United States. The data was collected and analyzed using high-resolution aerial and satellite imagery. There may be occasional differences between locally collected data and nationally collected data due to differences in methodology used to collect the information.

This data can also be used to understand Cleveland’s changing canopy.