Executive Summary
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The Urban Forest Health Needs Assessment Survey was designed to query urban forestry professionals and learn about their attitudes toward the general issue of urban forest health, identify specific training and information needs in the areas of urban tree health management, and discover preferences in educational outreach methods. The survey was distributed to urban forestry professionals throughout the 20 northeast and Midwest States and the District of Columbia, which are served by the Northeastern Area State and Private Forestry, a unit of the USDA Forest Service.

Urban Forest Health
{short description of image} Less than 25% of urban forestry professionals ranked the general health of the urban forests in their State or city as being good to excellent.
{short description of image} 99% strongly agreed or agreed that preserving the health of urban forests should be an integral component of Urban and Community Forestry programs.
{short description of image} Less than half felt preserving the health of urban forests was an integral component of the existing Urban and Community Forestry programs in their city or State.
{short description of image} More than 95% identified long-term tree care and maintenance strategies as being critical to preserving the health and sustainability of urban forests in the Northeast, Midwest, and District of Columbia:

Top Five Long-Term Tree Care
Management Strategies		 Strongly
Agree/Agree
Proper Tree Pruning Techniques
Proper Site/Species Selection
Minimizing Construction Damage
Insect Management
Tree Health Monitoring		 ...99%
...98%
...98%
...96%
...96%


Training and Information Needs
Respondents selected long-term care and maintenance subjects in which they need training:
Top Five Training Needs % of
Total
Hazard Tree Evaluation and Management
Disease Management
Tree Health Monitoring
Natural Disaster Planning and Mitigation
Insect Management		 37%
33%
32%
30%
28%

Respondents selected long-term care and maintenance subjects in which they need printed information:
Top Five Printed
Information Needs		 % of Total
Insect Management
Tree Health Monitoring
Minimizing Construction Damage
Disease Management
Fertilization and Watering 		73%
73% 72% 70% 68%


Preferred Educational Outreach Methods
Respondents identified preferred educational outreach methods:
Top Five Educational
Outreach Methods
% of Total
Fact Sheets
“How To” Informational Brochures Workshops
Pest Alerts
Reference Books 		95%
93%
92%
89%
88%
Over 85% of the respondents felt it is more effective to produce two versions of informational pieces: one tailored for homeowners and another more technically oriented for professionals.
Recommendations
With 69 million acres of urban forests across the country, what better way of “caring for the land and serving people” than for the Forest Service to embrace an Urban and Community Forestry program that provides a comprehensive and targeted approach to urban forest health management? This survey provides valuable needs assessment information that can be used to develop programs that are specifically tailored to meet the identified needs of urban forestry professionals and their constituents in the Northeast, Midwest, and District of Columbia. The programs would respond to the need to improve the health of urban forests, address key urban tree health issues, implement critical urban tree health management practices and strategies, and deliver educational outreach programs using preferred technology transfer methods.

The following recommendations would enhance the implementation of a comprehensive and targeted approach to urban forest health management and should be considered for adoption into the Northeastern Area’s Urban Forestry Five-Year Plan, the National Urban and Community Forestry Plan, and the National Urban and Community Forestry Program Standards.

{short description of image} Develop comprehensive Urban and Community Forestry programs that address issues critical to preserving the health and sustainability of urban trees and forests in the Northeast, Midwest, and District of Columbia, and implement long-term plant health care practices and strategies.
{short description of image} Encourage States to include an urban forest health management component in their Five-Year Urban and Community Forestry Strategic Plans.
{short description of image} Encourage States to implement program priorities outlined in the National Urban and Community Forestry Program Standards when making decisions to allocate Federally and State funded tree planting grants:
{short description of image} All tree planting projects must include a 3-year maintenance plan (plans require the approval of the State Forester or a designee) that documents how the trees will be planted and maintained.
{short description of image} Projects involving tree protection and maintenance must meet American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards. (State standards may be substituted with USDA Forest Service concurrence.)
{short description of image} Trees planted must, as a minimum, meet the American Standards for Nursery Stock. (State standards may be substituted with USDA Forest Service concurrence.)
{short description of image} Develop and implement educational outreach programs in urban forest health management tailored to identified training and printed information needs, and preferred educational outreach methods.
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