About

From 2014 to 2017, Sustainable Salinas worked in collaboration with the Habitat Stewardship Project Monterey Bay (previously Return of the Natives) and The Bolsa Knolls Watershed Group to create a California Native Plant Garden at Santa Rita Park in Salinas. On April 1, 2020, five trees were planted at Santa Rita Park, which kicked off a campaign to expand and restore the Salinas Tree Canopy. Later that year, Sustainable Salinas steward Leti Hernandez was awarded a Monterey County Gives Campaign to fund a free-tree program in partnership with Bokay Nursery for private property owners. Robin Lee, a passionate community member and land steward, managed this program for 3 years, resulting in 250 trees being planted! 

The Salinas Tree People is a group of community members that came together at the beginning of 2026 led by Robin Lee as President to continue the canopy restoration campaign.  We are passionate about growing the city tree canopy through community advocacy,  and volunteer work. This group is working to support the city tree programs, offer public workshops for science-based education on tree planting and care, and partner with local schools, businesses, and property owners to plant trees free of cost through volunteer work. 

The Salinas Tree People are a group of concerned community members passionate about taking action to improve the negative impacts caused by the lack of healthy tree canopy in the City of Salinas. Under Communities for Sustainable Monterey County, the Salinas Tree People will help grow the city’s urban tree canopy, thus improving ecosystems, climate resilience, and community health through a campaign of tree-planting and education. 

Without a healthy tree canopy, our city is less sustainable, less resilient, and less healthy. Urban trees provide many ecosystem services, including oxygen production and air purification, reduction of stormwater runoff and improved groundwater percolation, reduced temperatures with increased evapotranspiration and shade, habitat for local wildlife, and improved aesthetics for a more enjoyable, walkable city. Studies show that cities with urban tree canopy coverage of at least 25% have cleaner air, better health outcomes, and are more climate resilient. Meanwhile, Salinas’s current canopy cover is approximately 11.5% with some neighborhoods under 5%. To reach 25% canopy cover by 2064, over 60,000 trees must be planted - more than 1,500 annually! Our goal for 2027 is to plant 300 trees at homes, businesses, schools, and public spaces. Help us plant beautiful and healthy trees in Salinas!

In Salinas, the majority of census tracts are negatively impacted by a low Tree Equity Score: 66 of 88 blocks have a tree equity score of 69 or less. These neighborhoods are also associated with high health burden indices (55.8), high numbers of people in poverty (44.8), and high numbers of people of color (91.1%). Growing the city’s tree canopy will not only improve our urban ecosystem health and help to mitigate the effects of the warming climate, but will improve socioeconomic equity and community well-being. 

Furthermore, many community members have voiced frustration with city tree management practices. We are working to support their voices through our advisory committee in addressing the City Council directly. Join us today!