It’s a damp Saturday morning in early June—gray skies, soggy ground—and yet, dozens of volunteers are out early putting shovels into the dirt to plant trees in a community lot.
The lot–on Duncan Street between Jefferson and Orleans streets in East Baltimore–is popular with neighborhood kids who use the grassy space to play, says Cynthia Gross, president of the resident-led nonprofit CARE Community Association.
“But it’s in direct sunlight,” she says. And even though it’s grassy, the lot is subject to the “urban heat island” effect, meaning that it’s often significantly hotter than areas with more shade.
Gross, who’s lived in the neighborhood for more than 50 years, says she hopes the trees will make the lot more pleasant, and act as a “living fence” to keep cars from illegally parking there.
The planting on this day was the result of a partnership between CARE Community, a group of volunteers from Under Armor, and Baltimore Tree Trust—a nonprofit founded in 2009 that has planted nearly 15,000 trees in the city, trained more than 400 residents on tree-planting, and removed nearly 100,000 square feet of pavement to combat the heat island effect.
Justin Bowers, the organization’s chief operating officer, says it’s his hope that the city’s tree canopy continues to grow.
“In a region that’s expected to only get hotter and more humid, planting neighborhood trees—whether they are along the block or on school campuses or in parks—is one of the best tools we have to help the city’s most vulnerable populations adapt to the impacts of climate change,” he says.
For example, Bowers says there have been documented cases in Baltimore where the shady, wealthy neighborhood of Roland Park is a full 16 degrees cooler some days in the summer than Broadway East. That “heat gradient” can be devastating for folks in lower-income areas who are elderly, experiencing homeless, have asthma or other health conditions, or simply don’t have access to air conditioning.
After a recent approval from Baltimore’s Board of Estimates, Baltimore Tree Trust is now the city’s contractor for tree planting and maintenance. Bowers says that means Baltimore’s trees will be planted and maintained by city residents who are earning “at least” a living wage.
“The sense of pride and accountability our staff share in the knowledge that we are making a tangible impact on the place where our families, friends, and neighbors live is the thread that ties all of us together,” Bowers says.
The 10 trees planted on the Duncan Street lot in June are just a starting point for the CARE Community. Baltimore Tree Trust already has plans to plant another 12-15 trees in the neighborhood during the next planting season, after the summer has passed.
Gross, the neighborhood association president, is excited. She wants to have a dedication ceremony for the trees, and get plaques that honor the names of all the volunteers, neighborhood residents, and children who helped get them in the ground.
“I’m definitely a city girl,” she said with a laugh. “I wasn’t much help [planting]. But I’m glad the other folks were here.”