Study Finds Global Cities Falling Short on Tree Canopy Cover for Urban Health
New research analyzing access to urban greenery across eight major global cities, including Melbourne and Sydney, reveals alarming gaps in tree canopy cover, despite the presence of visible trees. The study, published in Nature Communications, applies the ‘3-30-300’ rule, a sustainable cities benchmark, to evaluate urban nature access and its benefits.
The '3-30-300' Rule Explained
The rule, developed by Dutch urban forestry expert Professor Cecil Konijnendijk, suggests every home, school, and workplace should:
Have a view of at least three trees.
Be in a neighborhood with 30% tree canopy cover.
Be within 300 meters of a park.
While most buildings in the study met the "three trees" requirement, almost all cities fell short of the 30% canopy cover benchmark.
Key Findi...
