The City of Sebastian received its third consecutive Tree City USA Growth Award. Sebastian is the only municipality receiving this distinctive award in Indian River County.
“The trees being planted and cared for by Sebastian are ensuring that generations to come will enjoy a better quality of life. Additionally, participation in this program helps cultivate a sense of stewardship and pride for the trees the community plants and cares for,” said Dan Lambe, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation.
This award accompanies Sebastian’s 20 years of receiving the Tree City USA Growth Award. To commend the occasion, the Arbor Day Foundation has sent two new signs (see attached picture), which will be installed this week.
National Arbor Day will be observed on Friday, April 29th. The Sebastian City Council will be reading the City’s Arbor Day Proclamation at the April 13th meeting. Please join the City in celebrating at the Natural Resources Board’s Arbor Day and Earth Day Celebration on Saturday, April 23rd, at Riverview Park.
What is Tree City USA Growth Award?
A Growth Award is bestowed to a community alongside their Tree City USA recognition for demonstrating environmental improvement and a higher level of tree care.
The Growth Award recognizes major milestones and annual activities in five categories on a point-based system to build sustainable community forestry programs over the long term, such as: building a team, measuring trees and forests, planning the work, performing the work, and building the community framework.
With the additional recognition of a Growth Award, Sebastian has demonstrated its expediency towards building a framework for sustainable urban forest management.
Urban tree plantings help reduce energy consumption by up to 25 percent, which will reduce general energy costs and help with the overall cooling of the City as well.
Trees Promote Cleaner Water, Increase Property Value
In addition, members of the community benefit from properly placed trees as they increase property values from 7-20 percent. Trees also positively affect the local ecosystem by helping to clean water and create animal habitats.
