Replace trees immediately - Sustainable urban living

HUMANITY passed a milestone in recent decades. For the first time, more of us live in cities than in rural settings. 

Crossing that Rubicon means it has become more difficult to ensure that our cities can support a tolerable quality of life.

Protecting air and water quality for city-dwellers may well be the next great challenge. London, like many conurbations, recognises this, and yesterday brought in a new levy on the oldest cars using the city centre. Drivers already pay a £11.50 congestion charge, but, from yesterday, those driving vehicles registered before 2006 must pay an additional £10 — £21.50, or €24.15, each time they visit parts of the city. This, unlike our head-in-the-sand food-production ambitions, is a proactive response to real climate change.

Last week, Hurricane Ophelia caused widespread destruction. The urgent need to repair that damage might mean our response to one of the legacies of Ophelia might be long-fingered. The storm seemed to have a particular impact on trees in urban settings, especially those that added such character to mature streetscapes. Some trees, especially if they were an inappropriate species for their setting, may not be missed, but the vast majority of those felled by Ophelia should be replaced immediately. In a world where congestion charges may be the new normal, planting a new generation of urban trees would be a salve for the soul, enhance air quality, and discharge one of our duties to the future.