West Mt. Airy Looks in Your Backyard and Sees a Forest

On a hot night in late August, West Mt. Airy Neighbors (WMAN) held its Quality of Life meeting on the greening of Mt Airy. The NorthWest Philadelphia neighborhood of Mount Airy is one of the neighborhoods at the edge of the Wissahickon which is part of the Fairmont Park System. The future of Fairmount Park is of concern to the residents of the neighborhood. The meeting opened with a presentation that represents the kind of broad thinking about sustainability I hope that other sustainability councils and local greening committees will take to heart.

Fall in The Wissahickon Forest

The Future of the Northwest Philadelphia Urban Forest

A review of Sebastián I. Varela ’s Master’s Thesis on the Northwest Urban Forrest.
By Paco Verin, B.A., PCH

This article is a summary of a large and important study of the NorthWest Philadelphia urban forest., and it offers a call to action to its inhabitants. Sebastián Varela’s study focused on trees, is complex and involved many people, and this article does not intent to address every aspect of it The author of this summary acknowledges past and present efforts by a number of individuals and organizations to care for Philadelphia’s trees and natural spaces. To receive a full copy of Sebastián Varela’s study, please contact Mr. Varela directly at:  sivarela@syr.edu