The West Midlands is the most built up region in the UK, with a population of nearly 3 million people; the four districts of the Black Country support a population of around 1.2 million people. Whilst the outskirts of the region are bordered by greenbelt land and may be considered peri-urban, the vast majority of the Black Country is considered urban.
The urban forest of the Black Country is a vital resource for the Midlands. It provides a number of benefits to the residents, and the ecosystem services reported here are just a few of them. This study captures an immediate snapshot of the urban forest at the present time in relation to the plots sampled. It does not consider how the urban forest has or might change over time, or the reasons for this change. Its purpose is to provide a means to make informed decisions on how the urban forest could and should change in the future, and how to ensure that it is healthy and resilient.
This report is supplemented by the individual reports for the councils of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton.
