We are the Urban Forest Council (UFC) and are very concerned about the needless removal of our native conifers from city lots and development sites. 

Ponderosa pines & Douglas fir are the giant Redwoods of Spokane’s urban forest. It takes decades for conifers to grow this tall. We’re not planting these towering trees any more; in fact, we’re even paving and landscaping their nurseries. In their place we’re planting non-native, small deciduous trees that live only a fraction of the 200 years a native conifer can grow and lower our urban forest canopy from more than 100’ to 40’.

Although it’s easy to forget, Spokane was built in a forest of Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. When you approach the city from any direction; central Washington, the rolling Palouse wheat fields, Idaho through the valley or Canada, you know you’ve arrived when the first Ponderosas appear.

Making an Effort to Save Trees
The Regal Partners were presented with a Tree Preservation Award from the UFC for their efforts to save trees on the Ben Burr Building construction project. By carefully preserving the mature conifers that surrounded the homes originally built on this site, the Regal Partners have taken a bold step toward new tree preservation practices in Spokane. More>>

Urban Logging

Spokane's community forest is being logged, and we are losing the native trees that keep us cool in the summer, protect us from wind in the winter and reduce peak storm water flow. More>>

Nominate a Project
Do you know of a development that has made an effort to save native trees? We periodically award projects for their preservation efforts. Click here to download a nomination form.