Land Use is a strong determinant of both existing and potential tree canopy cover.
For each of seven land use classes, Tree Canopy metrics were calculated as a percentage of land area in the specified land use category, and as a percentage of all land in the county. Residential land is the largest land use type within the county, at 50.8%, and contributes 62.4% of the county’s total tree canopy.
Possible Tree Planting Area is also dominated by residential land uses, accounting for 57% of all Vegetated Possible Tree Planting Area in the County.
Commercial and industrial land uses provide significant potential planting area, particularly in their impervious areas (paved surfaces that are not buildings or roads). Parking lots and areas immediately adjacent provide significant area for the establishment of tree canopy to reduce stormwater runoff and urban heat effects.
Similarly, public rights-of-way offer substantial area for tree planting efforts, with a combined 11.6% of the county’s Vegetated Possible Tree Planting Area. In addition to their ecological and societal benefits, establishing tree canopy in these areas could add to tree canopy totals at the expense of current roadway and other adjacent impervious cover.
Tree Canopy metrics summarized by land use
Tree Canopy metrics summarized by land use
| PERCENT OF LAND USE CATEGORY | PERCENT OF COUNTY LAND | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land Use | Existing Tree Canopy | Possible Planting Area Vegetated | Possible Planting Area Impervious | Not Suitable for Planting | Total Land | Existing Tree Canopy | Possible Planting Area Vegetated | Possible Planting Area Impervious | Not Suitable for Planting | Total County Land |
| Residential | 45.4% | 33.5% | 10.3% | 11.1% | 100.0% | 62.4% | 57.1% | 34.4% | 30.4% | 50.8% |
| Commercial | 16.1% | 22.3% | 42.6% | 19.5% | 100.0% | 2.5% | 4.3% | 16.1% | 6.0% | 5.8% |
| Industrial | 18.4% | 27.4% | 33.9% | 21.1% | 100.0% | 4.6% | 8.5% | 20.5% | 10.5% | 9.2% |
| Park/Open Space | 67.2% | 14.9% | 3.5% | 17.5% | 100.0% | 18.7% | 5.1% | 2.4% | 9.7% | 10.3% |
| Institutional | 25.6% | 32.6% | 22.3% | 19.9% | 100.0% | 3.5% | 5.6% | 7.4% | 5.5% | 5.1% |
| Agricultural | 43.7% | 43.8% | 3.6% | 11.3% | 100.0% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 0.7% |
| Transportation/Utility | 13.0% | 38.0% | 17.4% | 32.4% | 100.0% | 1.9% | 6.8% | 6.1% | 9.3% | 5.4% |
| R/W Highway | 10.0% | 44.2% | 15.7% | 30.2% | 100.0% | 0.6% | 3.3% | 2.3% | 3.6% | 2.3% |
| R/W Street | 17.5% | 23.5% | 15.5% | 43.6% | 100.0% | 5.0% | 8.3% | 10.7% | 24.6% | 10.5% |
| Total County | 37.0% | 29.9% | 15.3% | 18.6% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
Vacant Land Summary
Over 56% of vacant land in Cuyahoga County consists of Existing Tree Canopy. More than 40% of the remaining area is available as Possible Tree Canopy—largely vegetated.
While much of this land consists of smaller, isolated urban parcels, there are significant opportunities for land assembly. In a recent analysis of vacant land in the County, the CCPC aggregated adjacent vacant parcels to form vacant “tracts”, and found that over 20,000 acres of the County’s vacant land were in tracts that were 2 acres or larger.
Additional consideration should be given to reforestation opportunities that are available on large former industrial properties as well. The City of Flint, Michigan has undertaken an effort to plant approximately 1,000 trees on its “Chevy in the Hole” brownfield site.
For downloadable spreadsheets and GIS data, see the Downloads page.
For an interactive version, explore the Land Cover/Tree Canopy layers in our Greenprint Viewer.
