Brockville looks to partner with national charity for ‘Hero Forest’ tree planting initiative

Brockville may be getting a little greener in the near future.

At their regular meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 15, the Brockville General Committee heard a presentation from ‘Trees for Life’ representatives Mike Hurley and Marina Dimitriadis with the hope that Brockville City Council will partner with them on a future project. 

‘Trees for Life’ is a national Canadian charity dedicated to tree planting in urban and suburban environments to create healthier, happier spaces for all.

Many may be familiar with ‘Trees for Life’ after their successful Highway of Heroes campaign in 2015.

“Wrapping up in 2022, the campaign saw us raise over $10 million and we achieved our goal of planting over two million trees along the Highway of Heroes corridor,” Hurley said. This project is now considered the world’s largest living memorial of its kind. 

Now, the charity is looking to partner with municipalities, conservation groups, not-for-profits and other suitable organizations to create more green ‘Hero Forest’ spaces throughout the country. Hurley explained, “ We decided to continue that tradition but open it up to make it a much more inclusive type of program for all types of heroes. So first responders, healthcare professionals, teachers, average heroes in our lives.” 

Hurley continued, “We’re looking to collaborate with other organizations and municipalities to identify publicly accessible green spaces and parks where Grove trees can be planted with dedicated rows in this sort of a centralized setting for these hero forests.”

The incentive behind planting more trees within urban and suburban areas is not only to increase biodiversity and provide numerous environmental benefits but also for aesthetic and ”re-beautification purposes” as Hurley put it.

“Investing in trees at the municipal level is always a good investment because they do so many different things for our communities. They help with municipal infrastructure, they’re air conditioners, they’re water filters, they’ve even been shown to improve mental health and well-being, as well.”

After the presentation concluded, Mayor Matt Wren voiced his support for the initiative, stating “In our small footprint in public spaces alone, we’ve lost over 1,400 ash trees to the Emerald ash borer. That doesn’t include the loss of trees on privately-owned lands and I really think we need to take a look at replenishing our canopy and an organization like Trees for Life would allow us to move forward much more quickly.”

When asked what type of trees would be used for a project such as the ‘hero forest’, Hurley elaborated “We would work with local experts, typically the urban forestry department, to determine the right tree for the right place. But again, we stress the importance of using a native species.”

Mayor Wren was then called upon to create a new motion, which was to direct staff to enter discussions with the charity about creating a potential program for the City of Brockville and to report back to the general committee at a tentative date of December 2025.

After some discussion among city staff, the motion to pursue more discussions with Trees for Life was passed unanimously by the General Committee.