WIRRAL residents are urged to take part in an innovative local tree study that aims to assess the structural, environmental and social effects of trees across the borough.

Wirral Council became the first local authority in the region to join the ‘i-Trees Eco Study’, a nationwide project carried out in partnership with Forest Research, Britain’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research.

As part of the study, residents are invited to share their thoughts and experiences about trees in their communities.

People signing up to complete the survey will be asked about the number of trees in their area, the health of these trees, the type of trees they like to see and where they would like to see them. They can also tell the study what they already do, or would like to do, to better look after trees in Wirral.

This survey is an opportunity for residents to let the council know what they think about the trees in their local area, their importance and why they need to be managed.

Surveys of trees, including measuring trees and logging the type of tree, are taking place to support this work across 252 plots chosen at random across Wirral – on both Council-owned and private land - to collect field data.

The feedback provided through the survey will be combined with data that is being collected through the field surveys and, together, the results will provide more information about the value of trees to people in Wirral and help the council with future decision making.

Cllr Liz Grey, Chair of the Environment, Climate Emergency and Transport Committee for Wirral Council, said: "We increasingly appreciate the value of urban trees – for many of us, they are attractive and add to our quality of life.

"They provide shade, can help biodiversity, contribute to reducing air pollution and help fight climate change. Recent reports indicate that they may be in grave danger from the future effects of climate change. We really need to focus on our urban treescape.

"Using the pioneering i-Tree tools, this study aims to quantify their impact more accurately and in Wirral we are going to be the first ones to also look at their social and cultural value – what they do for people’s health and wellbeing.

The help of residents in taking part in the survey will be invaluable as we will be using the results of the study to help make more effective management decisions, develop policy and set priorities for Wirral’s treescape going forward.”

The survey will be hosted on the Forest Research website shortly and close on October 31.

A link will be posted on here https://www.wirral.gov.uk/about-council/climate-change-and-sustainability/trees-hedgerows-and-woodland/i-trees-eco-study