Item - 2025.IE19.9

The Infrastructure and Environment Committee:

1. Directed the Executive Director, Environment, Climate and Forestry to examine increasing fees and fines to address compliance with the City’s Tree By-laws through the current review of tree bylaws in progress and report back as part of the tree bylaw review.

Toronto's urban forest consists of over 11.5 million trees, which spans streetscapes, parks and ravines, commercial and industrial lands, and residential properties and provides fundamental ecosystem services. These ecosystem services include creating oxygen and removing pollutants from the air, reducing energy costs, improving water quality, mitigating extreme heat, and providing food and habitat for the many birds, insects, amphibians, and mammals which contribute to the city's biodiversity.

Like many major urban centres around the world, Toronto is experiencing the impacts of climate change. These changes include more extreme heat and extended heat waves that can disproportionately affect the health and wellness of equity-deserving groups. A healthy urban forest is fundamental to climate resilience and provides access to the numerous benefits which is central to Toronto's tree equity approach to canopy expansion.

The purpose of this report is to describe Toronto's multi-pronged approach to ensure the expansion, protection and maintenance of trees across Toronto's urban forest as climate change intensifies. City Council has reaffirmed its commitment to achieving a 40 per cent canopy cover by 2050. Urban Forestry is using a tree equity approach to grow the tree canopy where it is needed most, ensuring that all Torontonians, including equity-deserving groups such as children and seniors, realize the co-benefits of a healthy and resilient urban forest.