Mazhar Choudhry
"By not disturbing our green belts."
Bob Bell
"One of the things that people love most about living Ward 1 is our amazing green spaces and mature trees. We need to make sure that building more density in our ward does not just mean more hardscaping. I'd also like to see us explore urban design options that integrate greenery more meaningfully, to ensure we build livable density in the east end."
Yvette Ashiri
"In the past several decades, our City's urban tree canopy has been depleting at a concerning rate. We must invest in improving our urban tree canopy if we wish to meet our climate needs, and investing in our Urban Forest Management Plan, as well as a 40% canopy cover target, is an instrumental part of that. Not only do urban forests increase air quality and reduce the heat island effect, but they also contribute to improving mental health, reducing crime, and improving the overall quality of life."
Tammie Trellert
"Trees are our infrastructure. They are not decoration.
Ottawa's forests and urban tree canopy help manage stormwater, reduce extreme heat, improve air quality, support biodiversity and make our neighbourhoods healthier and more resilient. We need to treat them as an essential part of our city's infrastructure.
Ottawa has a 40% urban tree-canopy target, but the most recent data shows we have work to do. I would focus on protecting existing mature trees first, because planting a new tree does not immediately replace the environmental value of a mature one. Development needs to properly consider tree retention from the beginning, not after decisions have already been made.
Then we need to plant more and plant where the need is greatest. I support Ottawa's move toward proactive, equity-based tree planting, including identifying neighbourhoods with lower canopy and greater exposure to heat. The City is already moving in this direction through its Tree Planting Strategy and Plant Your Place! program.
I would also support expanding partnerships with residents, community groups, schools and businesses, increasing planting along streets and in parks, and looking at innovative approaches such as small urban forests where appropriate. But planting is only half the job, we need to budget for watering, maintenance and long-term survival, not simply count how many trees went into the ground.
For Ottawa's rural communities, protecting existing forests and maintaining no net loss of rural forest cover also needs to remain a priority.
Most importantly, I want us to measure the results. We already have the data and tools to track canopy change. Let's use them to publicly report whether we're actually moving toward 40%, where we're losing canopy, where we're gaining it and where investment is needed next.
A greener Ottawa isn't just about planting more trees. It's about protecting the forests we have, growing the canopy equitably, and making sure those trees are still here for our kids and grandchildren."