Detroit officials are planning to plant 75,000 trees in the city over the next five years.
They hope the trees will help protect residents from extreme heat and other effects of climate change.
The city partnered with U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, American Forests, DTE Energy, Detroit Future City and The Greening of Detroit to start the effort.
It’ll cost $30 million, but Mayor Mike Duggan said having a tree canopy can affect air quality, lower air conditioning costs, improve flood resilience and more.
It will initially be funded through philanthropy and federal funding available through the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act.
"Can you imagine what this city would look like if you managed to do two things at once? Planted 75,000 trees for the environment but also created sites of beauty where people have been staring at scrap yards?" Duggan said.
Officials said the effort will include hiring more than 300 workers for jobs related to tree care and maintenance.
The goal for the Detroit Tree Equity Partnership is to plant 15,000 trees a year for the next five years.
Editor's note: DTE Energy is one of Michigan' Radio's corporate sponsors.
