Have you ever walked through a NYC neighborhood on a hot summer day and felt like something was missing? It’s not just a tree or two, but the full leafy canopy that makes a street feel cooler and more welcoming. This lack of trees is not by chance. All over New York City, disadvantaged communities (DACs) have far fewer trees. These neighborhoods deal with more extreme heat, poor air quality, and flooding - all which could be mitigated by an increase in healthy street trees. Yet, they often have the least shade, the fewest green spaces, and many empty tree beds. Some areas in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens have noticeably less tree canopy; see the tree distribution on the NYC tree map. This is what environmental (in)justice looks like. Not only do street trees provide shade, oxygen, wildlife habitats, and beauty, they are scientifically proven to lower stress, anxiety, and blood pressure levels and improve people’s mood. That’s why Big Reuse is planting trees in disadvantaged communities in Brooklyn and Queens during the first three planting seasons of our new Tree Planting Program.
Planting Where It Matters Most
This spring, Big Reuse launched our first full tree planting season with support from a multi-year grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). This follows our pilot planting project in Fall 2024, when we planted 15 trees and improved 6 beds in Astoria with Rise Light & Power and then-Assembly Member, now NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani.
Over the next three planting seasons, Spring 2026, Fall 2026, and Spring 2027, we’ll be planting a total of 235 new trees. With the support of DEC funding, we’re also caring for 3,000 existing street trees with help from volunteers and local partners.
Our focus for Spring 2026 planting was on the Brooklyn Navy Yard (District 35) and Cypress Hills (District 37). These neighborhoods have not received as much green investment, even though many New Yorkers call them home, and deserve shade, clean air, and cooler streets. Along Flushing Avenue near the Brooklyn Navy Yard, the NYC Street Tree Map showed 50+ already planted street trees; Big Reuse is proud to have increased this number with our planting program. In Cypress Hills-City Line, the NYC Map showed 3,740 trees from 166 different species were already in the ground before our program began. While that may sound like a lot, these trees are spread out over a large area that still lacks enough green investment, and many of those tree beds remain empty, compacted, or without proper care. Big Reuse is adding needed support to what’s already there, planting new trees and helping existing ones thrive.
By the end of May, we expect to have planted 65 trees total between both neighborhoods. We are excited to plant more trees in other neighborhoods this Fall!
Before and After: One Tree’s Impact
Imagine a block with no trees. On a summer afternoon, the sidewalk gets hot. Kids waiting outside school have no shade. There is nothing between the street and the front steps, and stormwater rushes straight to an already full drain. The air feels heavy, and the block feels bare.
Now imagine that same block a few years after a tree is planted and cared for. The canopy starts to grow. There is shade outside the corner store. The soil around the tree is loose and healthy, thanks to compost added by volunteers. Birds visit, and kids stop to look at the leaves. The block feels different. It feels like a place where people want to be. Streets with trees are several degrees cooler in summer, have fewer cases of heat-related illness, and even see less stress and anxiety among residents. For neighborhoods like Cypress Hills and Brooklyn Navy Yard, which already face more environmental challenges, even one more healthy tree makes a difference. Planting these new trees will truly transform these areas. On top of that, more trees create a healthier environment and healthier mindset as well!
North Portland Street Tree Planting Celebration
On April 1, 2026, our tree planting crew headed to North Portland Street by the Brooklyn Navy Yard for our very first planting event of the season. We partnered with Cumberland Packing Corporation and Council Member Lincoln Restler, whose District 33 borders the planting area. Together, volunteers planted two pin oak trees in empty tree beds, each one weighing around 400 pounds. Our team guided volunteers through each step: loosening the soil, mixing in compost, digging to the right depth, and adding mulch. Cumberland employee Ana Zaldarriaga, who helped with everything from logistics to water supply, summed it up simply: "This is our backyard." That says everything about why this work matters. It shows these trees are being planted in the places where people live, walk their kids to school, and sit outside on summer evenings. They belong to the community.
Big Reuse's Tree Planting Program Coordinator, Maric Kusinitz, reflected on what the launch meant: "We are so grateful to have received this grant from DEC, allowing us to expand the urban tree canopy in neighborhoods that need them the most in Brooklyn and Queens. Our dedicated staff at Big Reuse and incredible community partnerships in the Navy Yard neighborhood made our first planting season more fun and successful than we could have imagined!"
Why Trees Change Everything for These Neighborhoods
A single street tree does more than most people think. Trees cool sidewalks on hot days, soak up stormwater, clean the air, and create shaded, welcoming blocks where people want to spend time. Even a young tree removes about 25 pounds of carbon dioxide each year, and that number increases as the tree grows. In neighborhoods that already deal with more heat, flooding, and air pollution than other parts of the city, a tree is not just a nice extra. It is infrastructure, health, and belonging all at once.
Composting's Role in All of This
At Big Reuse, tree planting and composting go hand in hand. The compost we make at our Salt Lot composting site is used in the soil around new trees, giving them the nutrients they need to grow strong. Healthy soil leads to healthier trees, and that means more canopy, cleaner air, and cooler streets for all.
When you drop off food scraps at a community composting site or volunteer, you are part of this cycle too. Every small action matters.
How to Get Involved
We’re connecting with community organizations and residents in neighborhoods where we’re planting to share project updates and tree care resources. Here are some resources to help you get started:
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Check out our new Tree Planting Information & Resource Guide available in English and Spanish
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Visit our Street Tree Care & Planting page to learn more about our programs.
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Download our Street Tree Care guide in English, Spanish and Mandarin
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Download a student-friendly version of our Street Tree Care guide in English, Spanish, Mandarin and Arabic
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Follow our Eventbrite Page & Sign up for Upcoming Street Tree Care volunteer events - we host these year-round!
NYC recently released its 2026 Urban Forest Plan with bold goals for our city's urban forest. Read through it, learn what's at stake for your neighborhood, and then come out and join us in tree care work. Every tree we plant and every volunteer who shows up to continue to care for it is an important step toward making the Urban Forest Plan’s vision real.
Written by NYSERDA Climate Justice Fellow Tatiana Guerra