Mackay Regional Council has adopted a Urban Greening Strategy aimed at making the community cooler, greener and more conencted.
Urban greening is the process of strategically identifying ways to protect, plan and plant vegetation across urban areas, including streets, parks, reserves, car parks and waterways.
Mayor Greg Williamson says the strategy would put a plan in place to increase vegetation coverage across the region over the next 20 years.
“Mackay’s urban vegetation cover is relatively low, and it is also declining in some areas,” he says.
“The Mackay Urban Greening Strategy was developed with community input, and it provides a vision, target, and actions to make Mackay cooler, greener and more connected into the future.
“It will include actions, such as more planting projects, tree management, policy reviews and community engagement.
“Urban greening is a priority for us as a council as it not only provides shade from the hot sun, but it also improves air quality, reduces stormwater run-off and contributes to the amenity of Mackay’s urban character and sense of place.”
The Mackay Urban Greening Strategy highlights four key objectives including:
- growing greener and cooler neighbourhoods
- protecting and nurturing our valued green assets
- building community stewardship and partnerships
- adapting and learning.
The strategy also sets the following key targets, which it aims to achieve by 2042:
- an average of 40 per cent tree canopy cover over pathways (up from 16.8 per cent in 2021)
- an average of 40 per cent tree canopy cover over public parks and open space network (up from 33.6 per cent in 2021)
- an annual net gain of public tree numbers, ensuring more trees are planted than removed
