About Us
Our Mission: Tacoma Urban Forest Friends' (TUFF) 30by30tacoma is a grassroots effort to ensure the City of Tacoma reaches its adopted goal of creating a 30% tree canopy by 2030.
Our Reason: Did you know that our city has no way to stop the cutting of established trees during development projects or the ability to review the rationale for cutting large trees on private property, nor the resources to achieve its own stated goal of a 30% canopy by 2030?
The city of Tacoma adopted an ambitious Urban Forest Plan in 2019. Also, the city is currently revising the zoning code for tree preservation on public land (in right-of-way areas). Despite this progress, the city government currently lacks the power and resources to implement these civic improvements.
Our Impact: TUFF meets frequently with a wide range of organizations serving Tacoma residents to ensure they understand the value of our trees and the need to grow our canopy. We are seeking voter signatures to a petition urging our City Council to protect our existing trees and insist that the city fund the resources necessary to reach our 30% goal by 2030.
Our trees are our most important asset to:
Clean our air
Help offset rising temperatures in our city
Reduce storm water runoff
Limit erosion and pollution in our waterways
Muffle city noise
Offer food, protection and homes for wildlife
Bring cool shade to our buildings
Buffer against winter weather, etc.