Celebrate Trees is an environmental initiative of Mayor Paul D. Fraim and is designed as a community partnership that gives residents and businesses a reason to celebrate and grow Norfolk’s tree canopy. The program was inspired by a tree-planting program in Norfolk’s sister city, Kitakyushu, Japan.

Trees provide many benefits, including improving water quality, conserving energy, lowering city temperatures, reducing air pollution, enhancing property values, providing wildlife habitats, facilitating social and educational opportunities, and beautifying the city. Read more here.

In the coming years, Norfolk’s goal is to increase the tree canopy from 33% to 40%, the recommended percentage for cities east of the Mississippi River. To read more about Norfolk’s tree canopy statistics or to find out how tree canopy is measured, click here.