Tall timber missing in local canopy-cover surveys

accelerating the loss, particularly in some neighbourhoods, he said.

“Future development… would pose a significant threat to urban ngahere, especially tall trees, leading to long-lasting environmental impacts and loss of tree canopy cover.”

Davies said tree planting on public parks and roads had helped contribute to a small amount of total canopy coverage growth in some suburbs.

Work using AI had begun to measure changes in tree canopy cover between 2017 and 2023, he said.

The case study using this new technique would be reported back to the board in October, he said. More data would be taken in 2024. The area was the first in Auckland to be assessed with the new technology, he said.

Use of drones for photography will be compared with the former use of lidar (light detection and ranging), using laser technology. A recommendation will be made to council next year on whether to adopt the AI method more widely.

Davies said Devonport-Takapuna was chosen for the trial because it was in the middle range for tree coverage across the city.

Asked if the results would capture tree loss caused by this year’s summer floods and slips, Davies said the aerial photography for the survey had unfortunately been done shortly before the major weather events.

Local board members noted there had been significant loss of coastal trees, including those damaged by storms and removed later.

Davies highlighted the absence of significant large trees in the area. Devonport-Takapuna was among less than half of Auckland’s boards without trees above 30m tall. But it had a growing number in the 3-5m range.

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Davies outlined to the board the regional Urban Ngahere Strategy adopted in 2019, aimed at adapting to climate change and making the city more liveable.

Canopy coverage over 30 per cent was common in European cities, he said.

Board chair Toni van Tonder said the value the public placed on trees was not as high as it might be, but generational attitudes were shifting. However, “trees take time as does behaviour shift”.

• Cartoon and youth view, page 6.

Snapshot in time

Tree-cover statistics broken down for the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board area (shown in the map above) come from council surveys taken in 2013 and 2016-2018. New results are expected later this year.

• Westlake and Takapuna west have the lowest tree coverage, followed by Forrest Hill west, Milford west, and Belmont, Milford central, Bayswater and Hauraki.

• Takapuna south, Devonport, Cheltenham, Narrow Neck and Takapuna north have the highest coverage.

• Tree coverage fell fastest in Castor Bay –from 25 per cent to 23 per cent.

• Public-park tree coverage increased from 24 per cent to 27 per cent.

• Tree coverage along roads increased from 11 per cent to 13 per cent.

• Kaipatiki has 30 per cent tree-canopy coverage, partly due to its steeper, less easily developed terrain.