The Southern Nevada Water Authority minted a deal to put up to $500,000 toward tree planting in the Las Vegas Valley amid community concern that mandated grass removal is killing off existing canopy.
Money committed on Thursday will go to Nevada Plants, a nonprofit focused on planting as many trees in the state as possible to combat the urban heat island effect, in which a lack of trees and green spaces amplify extreme temperatures.
“It’s getting hotter, and we’re having more heat-related deaths,” said Lisa Ortega, the nonprofit’s executive director and a certified master arborist, in a Thursday interview. “We’ve got to do whatever we can to keep shade.”
Ortega said the funds will go toward planting trees in areas that scientists have identified as the worst urban heat islands. Previously, city-run giveaways have focused on areas such as east Henderson, east Las Vegas and downtown Las Vegas.
It’s not immediately clear how many trees the funds will provide, Ortega said, but the most common size they plant runs the nonprofit about $30 each.
According to the service agreement, Nevada Plants will identify places such as parks, schools and churches for the new trees. The organization will host public giveaways to distribute trees to homeowners, as well.
“We really want to target the neighborhoods that are high heat and see what we can accomplish,” Ortega said. “It’s not the end all be all. It’s just a little piece of the puzzle.”
The city of North Las Vegas and the College of Southern Nevada have expressed interest in working with Nevada Plants through this new partnership, Ortega said.
Days after lawsuit filed
Scientists generally agree that trees are the single most powerful tool to cool down urban cities like Las Vegas, though some disagreement in studies exists about how many degrees of cooling one tree can provide.
The deal comes three days after four valley residents filed a lawsuit against the agency over its ban on “useless grass,” or grass that a committee has deemed must be removed before the end of this year, when a state law passed in 2021 takes effect.
In the complaint, Las Vegas arborist Norm Schilling wrote that the required removal of grass directly under trees, contributing to the disturbance of root systems, has resulted in the demise of some 100,000 trees and has caused roughly $300 million in damage across the valley.
A few Las Vegas Valley residents, such as Diane Henry, spoke during public comment Thursday about the impact of the grass ban on dying trees. Henry said the agency’s water conservation policies “run counter to the goals” of planting trees, all while “existing urban canopy is simultaneously being destroyed.”
Ortega said Nevada Plants welcomes all new ideas or partnerships to spend the money throughout the valley.
Contact Alan Halaly at ahalaly@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlanHalaly on X.
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