Two FONTT members made public comments at the July 26th City Council meeting to summarize the main points in the written comments regarding the biodiversity goal and native tree policy.

Lizz Kleemeier, Ward 1

I’m Lizz Kleemeier, Ward 1. 

I’m here with Bradley to follow up on the written comments that FONTT sent you.  My task is to explain the context.  

Let me start with the larger context

In June 2020, the Council passed a resolution on overarching principles for managing the urban forest. The resolution included the goal to increase biodiversity through favoring native trees, and if appropriate, climate adapted trees. The council also revised parts of the tree ordinance in line with this new goal. 

This was and is a big deal.

• Biodiversity loss and climate change are two sides of the same coin. 
• That’s why Governor Moore just signed legislation to establish a Maryland Native Plants Program.

This brings me to the immediate context

In early June, the Urban Forest Manager asked for comments on proposed changes to the city’s Tree Species List.

We sent in comments — but we also realized that there were policy decisions embedded in the proposed changes to the tree species list.  The wording of the biodiversity goal is open to different interpretations.

That’s why FONTT has submitted comments to you.  We believe it is up to the council to clarify the intention of the council-mandated biodiversity goal.

We don’t think that clarification has to be onerous. We’re not talking about revising the tree ordinance again. We envision something more informal.

It would start with conversations among councilmembers and then expand to include the Ag. City Manager, the Public Works Director, and the UFM.

Now let me summarize the four areas where the council should provide clarification  

I’ll phrase this in terms of four questions. 

1. What is a native species?

2. What is a climate adapted species?

3. When should non-native species be planted — and how do we decide which ones?

4. How should the city inform us about which trees it’s planted where?

I can quickly explain the fourth question, about where the city is planting trees. 

Last year’s annual report did not include location information.  Since we wrote our comments, this year’s annual report has come out.  It is a giant step forward. 

Bravo!  There is now an interactive map on the city website showing where the city has recently planted trees on public land. 

What’s need is to add information on

• where trees have been planted under the Tree Takoma program and
• where replacement trees required under tree removal permits have gone in. 

Thank you.  I’ll now hand over to Bradley to give FONTT’s answers to the first 3 questions.

Bradley Simpson, Forest Ecologist, Ward 4

Good evening. I’m Bradley Simpson, a Forest Ecologist from Ward 4.

I’ll address the remaining three questions Lizz listed.

What is a native species?

The biodiversity goal and tree ordinance say “favor native trees,” and not “exclusively plant” native. Therefore, we believe that it’s reasonable for the council to define “native” as “native to Maryland.”

To promote Maryland’s beautiful biodiversity, it is important to plant the species that support our fragile wildlife, insects, and other native species. Maryland native trees have these specialist symbiotic relationships with other native species.

The recent heavy loss of older oaks in Takoma Park is a great example of the need to plant more Maryland native trees. These old oaks died because they had experienced years of landscape and environmental changes that made them more susceptible to pests and diseases.

But Takoma Park is in an ecosystem where oaks are a keystone species. We need to plant a new generation of native oaks to continue fulfilling the critical ecosystem functions that oaks provide to so many other native species.

What is a climate-adapted species?

Let’s be clear that no one can yet say with any certainty which tree species will be the “climate-adapted” ones. That’s because we cannot say with any certainty what the local climate conditions will be in 50 to 100 years. Although it will likely be warmer on average with more extremes, it is difficult to predict local conditions.

Second, let’s not give up on our native species. The language in the tree ordinance about favoring “native species and climate-adapted species” suggests that it’s either one or the other, not both. But why not both?

Trees native to Maryland’s piedmont physiographic region, which is where Takoma Park is located, are adapted to a whole range of environmental factors found here. That’s a good foundation for a tree’s chances of survival in a changing climate.

Then, we can do several things to increase the climate resilience of these MD native trees. For one, we should be planting MORE of them. That will increase genetic diversity and in turn foster evolutionary adaptation to climate change. We can also source seeds or seedlings from farther south within the natural range of a native species, such as getting our native oak trees from VA or NC.

When should non-native species be planted – and how do we decide which ones?

We argue that non-natives be planted only when no native species is suitable for a particular site.

We definitely do not think that more non-natives should be planted as a matter of course, for all of the reasons just explained.

As to which non-native species, we argue for near natives. A near native, in our definition, comes from a neighboring state within the same piedmont region in which Takoma Park is situated. A species native to places farther away may not provide any biodiversity benefits to our area.

Lastly, as Lizz mentioned, our governor just signed legislation establishing a program to promote Maryland native plants, so I hope we as a city can help Governor Moore realize this goal.

Plant Maryland native trees. Thank you.