CARP Focus Area - Urban Greening

Alameda’s natural and managed lands sequester carbon in the soil and plants, which absorb carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and store it as organic carbon through photosynthesis. To meet the City’s greenhouse gas reduction targets, the City will manage its parks and other open spaces in ways that support healthy soils and foster plants that can thrive in Alameda as the climate changes. This will ensure that Alameda’s landscapes continue to reduce rather than emit GHGs.

Data and Metrics

Strategies, Key Actions, and Targets

UG-1: Urban Forestry.

Carbon sequestration is the long-term removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into the earth’s natural systems including trees, grasses, soils, and riparian areas, thereby slowing the accumulation of GHGs in the atmosphere. Carbon sequestration through the enhancement of natural systems provides many quality-of-life and resiliency co-benefits in addition to emissions reductions.

For example, expanding the urban forest can help mitigate the urban heat island effect, improve air quality, provide traffic calming, and reduce energy use. Alameda will implement its Urban Forest Plan to increase tree canopy coverage by growing and maintaining the urban forest across all neighborhoods, particularly in socially vulnerable communities.

UG-2: Park and Open Space Management.

Several forms of carbon sequestration can be applied to open spaces, including planting trees, applying compost, reusing tree biomass as mulch, and restoring and protecting natural riparian areas and shorelines. The City will incorporate ecological principles and practices that enrich soils and increase carbon storage, while also increasing biodiversity, improving watersheds, and enhancing ecosystem services while aligning with the city’s resilience goals. Alameda will manage open space, green space, riparian areas, and shoreline in a way that increases carbon sequestration, habitat connectivity, public access to nature, and resiliency benefits.