Residents Encouraged to Help Expand Irvine’s Urban Forest

by ICNV Staff

Shortly after being elected Mayor in 2024, Larry Agran articulated an ambitious goal: to make Irvine the greenest city in America. But Mayor Agran’s efforts to create a greener, more sustainable Irvine began years earlier, when he worked alongside other early city leaders to establish the policies and programs that helped shape Irvine into the city it is today. That early leadership helped lay the foundation for Irvine’s extraordinary park system — now ranked the best in California and the second-best in the entire nation behind only Washington, DC. Years ago, Mayor Agran also set in motion a plan to plant 500,000 trees across Irvine, creating a greener, healthier, and more beautiful city for generations to come.

Today, Irvine is home to approximately 550,000 trees across public and private spaces, with tree “canopies” covering about 22 percent of the City. Building on this strong foundation, Irvine is now pursuing Mayor Agran’s next goal: achieving a 30 percent tree canopy by 2055. This new goal includes planting tens of thousands of additional trees throughout the City to help reduce Irvine’s carbon footprint, manage stormwater runoff, enhance biodiversity, mitigate the urban heat-island effect, cool our neighborhoods, and improve air quality.

More than 60,000 public trees currently line Irvine’s streets and fill our parks, where they are cared for by certified arborists and Public Works staff. But the majority of Irvine’s trees are on private properties and within Homeowner Associations (HOAs) — which means growing our urban forest is truly a community effort.

Residents, HOAs, businesses, and property owners all have an important role to play in creating a greener, healthier, and more resilient Irvine.

To encourage community involvement, the City has launched two new programs through its Plant It Forward initiative, making it easier for everyone to help grow Irvine’s tree canopy. Whether you plant a tree in your own yard or support one in a public space, there are plenty of ways to make a lasting difference.

Through a partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation, the City offers free trees to Irvine residents through its Residential Tree Giveaway program. Your new tree can help expand the neighborhood canopy, add beauty and shade to your property, and support a more climate-resilient community.

Want to make an impact beyond your own yard? Sponsor a Tree gives residents, families, and organizations the opportunity to help fund new trees in Irvine’s public spaces. Your sponsorship can support tree planting in parks and other public areas, honor a loved one or celebrate a special occasion, and help Irvine move closer to its tree canopy goal.

Through these two new community programs, Mayor Agran’s ambitious goal — to make Irvine the greenest city in America — is literally taking root . . . and becoming a reality.