Groningen aims to cover one-third of city with trees in 50-year plan

The municipality of Groningen announced plans to dramatically increase tree coverage across the city over the next 50 years, aiming for 30 percent of public space to be covered by tree canopies. Currently, only about 12.5 percent of non-built areas are covered, officials said.

“Trees and greenery have immense value and are incredibly important for keeping our city resilient, healthy, and future-proof,” Mirjam Wijnja, GroenLinks alderwoman for the environment, told RTV Noord.

The city reportedly plans to integrate the new tree standards into street redesigns and new housing projects. “Nowhere else in the Netherlands is greenery this legally protected,” Wijnja told RTV Noord. Wijnja also noted that other areas, like Driebondsbos along the Eemskanaal, remain protected.

Rik van Niejenhuis, the alderman for spatial planning, said, “We want to build a compact city with high-rises. Otherwise, we would have had to put desperately needed housing on the city’s outskirts, at the expense of existing green areas.” He added, “Changing the plans now would cost too much time and money. As administrators, we have to make these trade-offs. You win some, you lose some.”

“I was curious how this would be received. Nowhere in the Netherlands is greenery legally protected the way we will in Groningen,” Wijnja told RTV Noord.