Tree cover falls below the national average

Sunderland has a lower than average amount of tree cover, new figures show.

A new national mapping exercise by environment charity Friends of the Earth also shows that tree coverage roughly tracks levels of deprivation across the country – with the most deprived areas generally having fewer trees.

The analysis by mapping experts

TerraSul is identified lone and street trees and shows

11.2% of Sunderland is covered by foliage – compared to the figure for England as a whole which stands at 12.8%.

Census figures from 2021 shows just 41% of the 122,177 households in the city are not deprived in four key areas – housing, education, health and employment–and the area follows the national trend, as it ranks 209th for tree coverage and ranks 268th for deprivation.

The data also shows that 43% of neighbourhoods in England have less than 10% tree cover, while 84% have less than 20% coverage.

The Government's current goal is to increase tree coverage to 16.5% by 2050, but Friends of the Earth say the target should be ‘at least’ double that.

Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at the charity, said :" Current targets for tree planting are woefully inadequate. We need many more trees for urban cooling and absorbing harmful carbon emissions.

A Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs spokesperson said: “£650m is focused on the planting and establishment of trees in urban areas. Increasingtree and canopy cover is part of our plan to tackle the impacts of climate change and the biodiversity crisis."