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Measures to maintain Queens' extensive tree coverage

1:02:48

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Assistant Commissioner Osborne discusses the measures taken to maintain Queens' extensive tree coverage, which makes up about 36% of the city's street trees.

The Parks Department underwent a reorganization to consolidate borough forestry units.
This reorganization allows for more nimble reallocation of resources across the city.
Resources can be quickly shifted to respond to storms or other needs, which often impact Queens.

Nantasha M. Williams

1:02:48

Okay.

1:02:49

So Queens makes up about 30 percent 36% of the city street trees, the highest of any borough as noted on the New York City tree map.

1:02:58

What measures can be taken to ensure Queens' extensive tree coverage is properly maintained so constituents are not continually burdened by issues stemming from inadequate tree maintenance.

Ben Osborne

1:03:11

Sure.

1:03:11

Yeah.

1:03:11

Queens is our our largest borough, and, and and it does make up the largest portion of the work that we do, as well as the service request that we receive.

1:03:23

Chair Areola alluded to, our org structure.

1:03:27

And in fact, we did undergo a reorganization, last year, consolidating the 5 borough forestry units in the environment and planning division.

1:03:38

And one of the, reasons for doing so is to provide more nimble reallocation of resources across the city depending on where the needs are at any given time.

1:03:48

So if we have a storm that impacts 1 borough specifically, and that that does tend to be Queens, fairly often, we're able to shift resources to respond quickly to that storm.

1:04:01

And, you know, we're also able to do that, throughout our routine operations is adjust our resource levels across the city to target the needs where they are.

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Explanation of the tree maintenance prioritization system

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Staffing challenges in the Forestry Division and recruitment efforts