The Urban Forest Strategy is a policy framework that sets broad direction for forest policy and makes forest sustainability the primary objective of forest management. To achieve long-term forest sustainability can be far more complex in urban areas than in the natural environment due to the variation in land use, ownership, abiotic factors and competing social and economic interests. The strategy will direct the creation of an Urban Forest Management Plan for the City of Barrie. This plan will:
- Provide direction on all aspects of the urban forest program;
- Set goals and objectives for the long term sustainability of the urban forest;
- Set measurable targets for success; and
- Project short- and long-term resource requirements to meet goals.
The Urban Forest provides a variety of social, environmental and economic benefits to the citizens of Barrie. These benefits are well researched and published, and relate to a variety of measurable indicators of urban forest health. Ideally, urban forest managers will attempt to optimize all of the benefits, rather than maximizing any one to achieve the best value for the “services” that the urban forest provides. A basic Venn diagram (next page) illustrates the overlap of the social, environmental and economic interactions.