The Virginia Department of Forestry Urban and Community Forestry program seeks to support cities, towns, and communities across the Commonwealth as they establish and maintain their urban tree canopy. The benefits of trees to the urban environment, including water quality protection, are clear. As urbanized areas of the state grow, trees are an essential component of vibrant communities, providing balance to the built environment and improving the quality of life for residents and visitors.
Managing urban and community forest resources can sometimes be a complex undertaking. The DOF community assistance programs provide professional forestry assistance to help communities balance the built environment and their urban forest resources to protect, conserve, and manage tree resources for future generations.
- Community forest planning
- Urban forestry recognition programs such as Tree City USA
- Arbor Day in Virginia
- Financial assistance programs for urban and community forestry projects
- Planting urban riparian forest buffers
- Stormwater management
Additional Resources
| Image | Title | ID | Description | Content Type | View | hf:tax:document-category | hf:tax:Media |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Community Forest Planning: Storm Mitigation Guide for Virginia Communities Template | P00214T | Workbook and the accompanying template are intended as tools for Virginia communities to use in assessing their community forest storm readiness, mitigating tree risk and reducing tree-related storm damage, and developing a community forest storm mitigation plan. Available in Word template form with form fields that can be filled in – unprotect the form to change the template to meet your needs. Printed copies available. | Publication, Template | View | urban-and-community-forestry | publication template |
 | Community Forest Planning: Storm Mitigation Guide for Virginia Communities Template | P00214T | Workbook and the accompanying template are intended as tools for Virginia communities to use in assessing their community forest storm readiness, mitigating tree risk and reducing tree-related storm damage, and developing a community forest storm mitigation plan. Available in Word template form with form fields that can be filled in – unprotect the form to change the template to meet your needs. Microsoft Word Template. | Publication, Template | View | urban-and-community-forestry | publication template |
 | Community Forest Planning: Storm Mitigation Guide for Virginia Communities Workbook | P00214 | Workbook and the accompanying template are intended as tools for Virginia communities to use in assessing their community forest storm readiness, mitigating tree risk and reducing tree-related storm damage, and developing a community forest storm mitigation plan. Printed copies available. | Publication | View | urban-and-community-forestry | publication |
 | Urban and Community Forestry Programs – Resources for Trees in Our Communities, Cities and Towns | FT0052 | Forestry topic information sheet discusses the urban and community forestry programs available through the DOF. | Publication | View | financial-assistance-urban-and-community-forestry urban-and-community-forestry | publication |
A variety of financial assistance programs are available through DOF and partner agencies for forest management activities to help protect water quality.
Explore All Financial Assistance Programs
Contact Us
For more information or questions, e-mail us or use our contact form.