March 4, 2025 Montreal, Quebec Natural Resources Canada
Montrealers will see a significant increase in their urban tree canopy, thanks to tree-planting efforts that will result in over 500,000 trees on the island by 2030.
At an event in Montreal today, the Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, on behalf of the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, announced that la Société de verdissement du Montréal métropolitain (Soverdi) will re-launch its Un arbre pour mon quartier initiative in partnership with the Regroupement des éco-quartiers.
This flagship initiative enables Montreal residents to acquire at low cost a variety of trees suited to an urban environment, along with support in planting and maintaining them. With its roots in an ambitious vision of greening, this initiative is part of a broader project aiming to plant 200,000 trees on private and institutional properties in the city, including residences, schools, hospitals, industrial areas and businesses.
Minister Guilbeault also announced almost $49 million in federal funding to support the City of Montreal's goal of planting over 300,000 trees on the city's public lands. The project is expected to bring numerous long-term benefits to citizens, including:
- the creation of nine new urban green spaces; and
- cooling areas of the city that are vulnerable to extreme heat.
The project is part of the city's official climate plan, as increasing the urban tree canopy will also help lower GHG emissions and contribute to the city's overall climate resilience.
In addition, the Minister highlighted a new agreement between Canada and the Province of Quebec that will plant up to 102 million new trees across the province by 2031. This tree-planting project will reforest 50,000 hectares of land in Quebec, including areas that have been devastated by wildfires and spruce budworm infestation and abandoned sites such as sand pits and wastelands.
Projects announced today are funded in part by Canada's 2 Billion Trees (2BT) program, which is dedicated to working with governments and organizations across the country to support the expansion of Canada's forests, green spaces and natural habitats while creating sustainable jobs in communities across Canada.
