In 2021, Milwaukee Recreation retained a consultant to provide the department with its first system-wide review and analysis of tree canopy health, and provide recommendations for short- and long-term maintenance. The consultant compiled data points on over 2,000 trees in the system that have since been used to budget and prioritize canopy maintenance projects.
Milwaukee Recreation’s goal is to provide a healthy urban forest for the community. When kept in good condition, trees provide countless benefits, even beyond the release of oxygen. Not only do tree canopies beautify parks and playfields, they boost these green spaces into true neighborhood centerpieces filled with vibrant opportunities for play. As the locations turn into social gathering hubs for all ages, community members can feel the positive impact of these spaces throughout their everyday life, as the value of surrounding homes increase, crime rates drop, and test scores for students rise.
Additional Resources from the Arbor Day Foundation
Impacts of the Emerald Ash Borer
Though over 80 percent of the department’s trees were found to be in ‘good’ or ‘fair’ condition, there is still much work needed to maintain the health of the department’s canopy. Of utmost importance is mitigating the impacts of the emerald ash borer, an invasive species of beetle that attacks all native ash trees. The emerald ash borer has now spread across the country, impacting millions of trees nationwide. Milwaukee Recreation has prioritized the removal of all ash trees from the system over the coming years.
Impacts of Dutch Elm Disease
Dutch Elm Disease (DED) is a vascular wilt disease that causes the decline and eventual death of native North American elms. Elms were the primary street tree in the 1960s in Milwaukee when DED took hold. By the mid 1970s, 90 percent of public elm trees died and were removed (Hauer, et. al.). We are still seeing the effects of this loss, an issue that continues due to the overplanting of ash trees.
Work History and Outlook
Starting in 2023, work began to remove and prune playfield trees determined to be safety concerns. Nineteen sites were completed during 2023, leading to the removal of 197 trees and 20 existing stumps, as well as the pruning of 113 additional trees.
In 2024, work continued at 23 Milwaukee Recreation playfields. The 2024 work completed the high priority removals and pruning.
Cyclic canopy maintenance efforts will continue annually to promote the health of the department’s trees into the future. Proactive maintenance activities are more cost effective, increase the health and value of the department’s trees, and provide a safer playfield environment for all users.
Milwaukee Recreation manages just over 2,000 trees across 53 sites. Annually, the carbon benefits of these trees are 50,000 pounds of carbon sequestered and 183,000 pounds of CO2 removed from the atmosphere. There is 180,000 gallons of runoff avoided and 12.3 million gallons of rainfall intercepted annually. Finally, other air pollution removal occurs, trees remove carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and other particulates from the air. These benefits keep water from our infrastructure, put cleaner air in our lungs, and create a green and healthy environment for wildlife.
Replanting Efforts
Milwaukee Recreation has engaged in playfield renovations across the system, completing several major renovations in the last few years. Each of these projects has addressed tree canopy health issues, but moreover, has included the planting of an average of 50 new trees per playfield.
Further, the department partnered with the City of Milwaukee and its forestry division on a tree replanting grant that saw more than 400 additional trees planted across the system. Milwaukee Recreation kicked off these efforts on Arbor Day in 2019 to provide trainings for removal techniques to City Forestry arborist apprentices, teach Milwaukee Public Schools students about tree care and maintenance, and plant 32 trees with students from Zablocki School.
Milwaukee Recreation is always looking for new ways to continue its replanting efforts, including partnering with external organizations. In recent years, the Arbor Day Foundation has worked with Milwaukee Recreation and volunteers from a variety of local agencies to plant over 100 new trees combined at Custer Playfield (2022, USBank), Bryant Playfield (2023, West Bend Mutual Insurance), and Cooper Playfield (2024, Enterprise Mobility).
The department realizes the benefits of a healthy tree canopy, and recognizes that its aging canopy must be replaced proactively. Today, the department strives to plant more trees than it removes, and will continue its replanting efforts with grants, partnerships, volunteers, and other opportunities. To arrive at our goal of a healthy urban forest, we will be increasing the diversity of trees we plant in our parks to prevent the issues we have experienced with Dutch elm disease and emerald ash borer.