Texas Forest Service

City of Fort Worth receiving award

Award of Excellence - Local Government Project
“Look Up! Don’t Lose a Limb!” City of Fort Worth

When you are a city forester, you are not being a Chicken Little when you cry that the sky is falling! As we all know, street tree limbs rarely fall UP. In Fort Worth a new fleet of larger service vehicles, changing bus routes and trash collection methods was causing a sudden increase of street tree damage including falling limbs. In response, the City of Fort Worth developed the “Look Up! Don’t Lose A Limb!” campaign. This low cost, multi media approach aims to prevent tree loss by increasing citizen awareness of potential damage and reporting to the City Forestry Section for corrective measures.

The campaign encouraged residents to take time to “look up” and taught them to identify early signs of damage. It also instructed them to report low or damaged limbs to the Forestry Section or to their tree service. Residents were also instructed on proper placement of trash and recycling carts to avoid damage during collection. Lastly it reminded tree care professionals to include street clearance as part of their total service package.Since its inception in April 2005, the message has been widely promoted using low cost, high impact, media sources, targeting both residents and tree care professionals. “Look Up!” articles have run at the local, regional and statewide level, including local papers, neighborhood association newsletters and have appeared on web sites and local cable TV.

City staff have been trained and forestry staff has taken the message through speaking engagements to neighborhood associations, garden clubs, and other civic meetings. Another key component of the Look Up! Campaign is the use an informational brochure. The City’s is distributing 15,000 brochures to new clients receiving city water services and the Forestry Section will distribute the remaining 1,000 brochures at city events.

After only five months, increased citizen awareness of low limbs is evident by the number of phones calls to Forestry, and a decrease in major damage to trees.Street trees are an integral part of city infrastructure and contribute greatly to quality of life in our communities. Through the ongoing efforts of the “Look Up! Don’t Lose A Limb!” campaign, the City of Fort Worth has taken a proactive stance in protecting its urban forest. The low cost, high impact, multi media approach of Fort Worth’s Look Up! Campaign serves as a model for other communities to follow.


LOOK UP! DON'T LOSE A LIMB!

[ Print \| ] Award of Excellence - Local Government Project *“Look Up! Don’t Lose a Limb!”* City of Fort Worth When you are a city forester, you are not being a Chicken Little when you cry that the sky is falling! As we all know, street tree limbs rarely fall UP. In Fort Worth a new fleet of larger service vehicles, changing bus routes and trash collection methods was causing a sudden increase of street tree damage including falling limbs. In response, the City of Fort Worth developed the “Look Up! Don’t Lose A Limb!” campaign. This low cost, multi media approach aims to prevent tree loss by increasing citizen awareness of potential damage and reporting to the City Forestry Section for corrective measures. The campaign encouraged residents to take time to “look up” and taught them to identify early signs of damage. It also instructed them to report low or damaged limbs to the Forestry Section or to their tree service. Residents were also instructed on proper placement of trash and recycling carts to avoid damage during collection. Lastly it reminded tree care professionals to include street clearance as part of their total service package.Since its inception in April 2005, the message has been widely promoted using low cost, high impact, media sources, targeting both residents and tree care professionals. “Look Up!” articles have run at the local, regional and statewide level, including local papers, neighborhood association newsletters and have appeared on web sites and local cable TV. City staff have been trained and forestry staff has taken the message through speaking engagements to neighborhood associations, garden clubs, and other civic meetings. Another key component of the Look Up! Campaign is the use an informational brochure. The City’s is distributing 15,000 brochures to new clients receiving city water services and the Forestry Section will distribute the remaining 1,000 brochures at city events. After only five months, increased citizen awareness of low limbs is evident by the number of phones calls to Forestry, and a decrease in major damage to trees.Street trees are an integral part of city infrastructure and contribute greatly to quality of life in our communities. Through the ongoing efforts of the “Look Up! Don’t Lose A Limb!” campaign, the City of Fort Worth has taken a proactive stance in protecting its urban forest. The low cost, high impact, multi media approach of Fort Worth’s Look Up! Campaign serves as a model for other communities to follow.