Bayside’s Urban Forest Strategy was developed in response to the need for urgent and meaningful action on climate change, and was adopted by Council in February 2022 following extensive consultation with our community.

The Urban Forest Strategy identifies three major goals to increase and improve Bayside’s urban forest and the functions it serves.

• Increase the municipal tree canopy cover from 16% to 30% by 2040
• Raise awareness of the biodiversity gains that can be provided in backyards, front yards, nature strips and beyond and support the community to increase vegetation cover across Bayside
• Substantially increase understorey planting, including shrubs, small trees and all other elements that occupy the vegetation layer below the canopy of taller trees, throughout Council streets, parks and reserves to improve native biodiversity, provide habitat and food sources for a range of fauna.

The implementation of the Urban Forest Strategy has already commenced with 2,000 indigenous street and park trees planted in addition to the 1,400 trees that Council plants each year.

The development of Urban Forest Precinct Plans is a key action from the Urban Forest Strategy to identify specific actions to protect, manage, and grow tree canopy and vegetation cover across every suburb. Each Precinct Plan will respond to specific suburb challenges and identify opportunities for increased planting.

The growth of our Urban Forest is fundamental in connecting us to nature, contributing to the liveability of our suburbs and integral to maintaining Bayside’s neighbourhood character.

There are currently around 60,000 public trees spread across Bayside, however, since 2014 our tree canopy has decreased by 0.82%. The introduction of precinct plans will enable us to better protect, grow and preserve our urban forest.

The preparation of the Precinct Plans has been guided by Council’s arborists and ecological experts who have provided their specialist knowledge and identified areas for habitat corridors and linkages to improve biodiversity. Geographic Information System (GIS) mapping was used to detect vacant sites and sites with low vegetation cover. This includes a range of locations from public and private land, streets, and parks.

The nine types of areas identified for priority planting are:

• Minor and major streets with less than 20% canopy cover
• Locations of trees with less than 10 years of useful life expectancy
• Locations of trees with poor health
• Locations of empty tree sites
• Areas facing urban heat island effects
• Areas identified for habitat linkages and linkage improvements
• Council owned projects and open spaces
• Areas owned by other authorities
• Roundabouts and traffic islands

The plan outlines two delivery phases, with some actions already underway. Phase one actions are scheduled to commence within the next one to five years and phase two actions will be delivered over the next five to ten years. The complete delivery of the plan will be by 2040.

The Bayside Planning Scheme requires a permit to remove, destroy or lop any vegetation that is native or indigenous in Beaumaris due to the Vegetation Protection Overlay (VPO3) that covers the entire suburb. This does not apply to:

• The removal, destruction or lopping of vegetation which is less than 2 metres high or has a single trunk circumference of less than 0.5 metre at a height of 1 metre above ground level.
• The pruning of vegetation to remove that part of any branch which overhangs an existing dwelling or is within 2 metres of an existing dwelling.

As stated in the actions of the Urban Forest Strategy, Council aims to strengthen Beaumaris' VOP3 protections to reduce the vegetation size requirements which trigger a permit.

Strengthening the VPO will support our objective to maintain existing trees and enhance Beaumaris’ leafy character, as well as provide a range of benefits.

Native and indigenous vegetation will be planted throughout Beaumaris with a focus on introducing lesser prominent species. Eucalyptus, gums, banksia and other species are heavily featured across Beaumaris, forming an important part of the character of the suburb’s urban forest. While the character of Beaumaris will be maintained, vegetation from other native and indigenous species will also be planted to increase diversity and reduce the vulnerability within Beaumaris’ urban forest.

A species palette will work in tandem with the overarching Urban Forest Strategy to inform tree plantings across Beaumaris. Planting of specific species will depend on the geographic and environmental conditions, as well as the surrounding neighbourhood character.

The species table can be found in appendix 3 of the Draft Beaumaris Precinct Plan. The following species provided are of guidance only, and do not exclude other trees that are consistent with the character of Beaumaris.

Understorey vegetation includes small trees, shrubs, herbs, grasses, and mosses that occupy the vegetation layers below the canopy of taller trees.

Understorey vegetation is a vital part of an Urban Forest and is very important to help maintain high biodiversity and healthy ecosystems.

Understory planting enhances soil stability, increases fauna diversity and provides important habitat links, such as food, nest-building material, breeding sites and shelter for many native animals.

Nature strips play an important role in providing habitat connectivity. Native and Indigenous planting provides high habitat value and helps establish green corridors.

These corridors support the movement of pollinating insects, including native bees, flies, wasps, and beetles. These habitat corridors help strengthen biodiversity, provide colour to the streetscape and improve the amenity of the area.

Planting native and indigenous vegetation on your private property and on your nature strip will help to increase canopy coverage and provide important understory habitat links. Learn more about how to plant on your naturestrip.