Urban Forestry Projects
Studies, Projects and Plans
Fairfax City is developing the city’s first urban forest master plan with public input through 2025. Once complete, the plan will guide community stewardship efforts for the next 20 years. The Urban Forest Master Plan includes an assessment and management plan for non-native, invasive plant species on city-managed park and trail properties.
The Non-Native Invasive Species Assessment (NNIA) serves as a guiding document for the current presence of non-native invasive plant species throughout twenty-five maintained parkland, non-managed woodlands, and trail sites in the City of Fairfax, VA. Sites are prioritized and ranked by the species found within the assessed sites and the ecosystem, civic, and cultural value of the sites.
A brief update on urban forestry activities in the city for 2024.
This inventory analyzes 13,444 total sites (11,487 trees, 1,761 planting sites, and 196 stumps) to determine the state, characteristics, and trends of the city’s urban forest.
The assessment analyzed the most recent land cover imagery (2021) to map the City of Fairfax's urban tree canopy extent, possible planting areas (PPAs), and how they are distributed throughout the city within six geographic boundaries (city boundary, zoning districts, land use types, census blocks, resource protection areas, and parks). Report includes the data analyzed and key findings.
The city developed an Urban Forestry Program Evaluation Report to gain a better understanding of the city programs influencing urban forestry in order to protect and enhance the City's urban forest.
A tree canopy and land assessment was conducted using ArcGIS and Pictometry imagery from March 2015.
The public street tree survey information from 2007 and 2011 was used to assess tree abundance, population composition, functional benefits, and the monetary value of the City's publicly owned street trees. The street tree inventory data was analyzed using i-Tree Streets, an assessment software developed by the U.S. Forest Service.