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A bylaw keeping mature trees on private property from being cut down without a permit from the city is a good idea. City council’s urban planning committee heard this week that Edmonton is losing “canopy” (tree cover) “at a rapid rate.”

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I’m not much impressed by canopy advocates comparing Edmonton’s canopy to other large Canadian cities. Apparently, Montreal, Toronto, Ottawa and Victoria all have 25 per cent canopycover; Edmonton has just 13 per cent.

But one thing Edmonton is that the others are not: It’s a Prairie city. Therefore, our city is considerably drier than the others. Montreal receives 1,200 millimetres of precipitation in an average year. Ottawa receives 930 millimetres, Toronto 850 millimetres and Victoria 820 millimetres.

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