When planners think of trees they may well think of BS5837, tree surveys, hazard assessments and TPOs. The fact is that there are also numerous important advantages that trees can bring to residential and inner-city areas and which planners should be conscious off when assessing the impact of proposed schemes. It is important to consider not only how many trees may be lost to a development, but also how many trees will be planted by a developer, and what measures will be taken to ensure their survival. Thanks to our ongoing research into urban tree pit design, Greenleaf has created a product range which allows healthy trees to be successfully integrated into the urban environment. Our designs greatly reduce the environmental difficulties trees face in cities and towns, whilst simultaneously controlling the occurrence of common problems that they can cause, such as pavement heave or subsidence. Greenleaf products even make it possible for healthy trees to share soil space with utilities networks, with neither one impinging upon the other.

Trees can make a valuable and positive contribution on numerous issues that fall under the purview of urban planners such as pollution control, local climate mitigation, drainage and even crime reduction. When all of these factors are taken into consideration (not to mention the general improvements in quality of life for city inhabitants that result from high urban tree populations) we can see that there are strong economic, aesthetic and practical reasons for trees to be considered as an absolutely essential part of any development. As designers and architects become more aware of the possibilities offered by the latest innovations in tree pit design, towns and cities throughout the country will be able to benefit from increasingly green, tree friendly developments. However, planners and Planning Officers also have a vital role to play by pro-actively ensuring that developers provide for the establishment of mature trees on their schemes.

For more information on planting trees in urban spaces please see our pages on tree species and urban tree planting opportunities.