Zwolle Achieves World First with Sustainable Urban Tree Management |
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first city in the world to earn PEFC certificate for trees outside forests
Zwolle has achieved a world first. It is the first city globally to be awarded the PEFC certificate for Trees Outside Forests. This certification confirms that the management of trees outside traditional forests—such as roadside trees, park trees, and trees in natural strips—is conducted in a sustainable and responsible manner, marking a significant step in urban green space management. The official award ceremony took place in Park Eekhout, where Oscar van Doorn, director of SKH (Dutch Foundation for Timber Certification), presented the engraved wooden certificate to alderman Arjan Spaans.
| Left to right: Oscar van Doorn, Maarten Willemen, and alderman Arjan Spaans |
The idea for certification began in 2018, when Zwolle had to fell a large number of ash trees due to ash dieback. Rather than letting the wood go to waste, the city chose to process it sustainably. That success led to more. Zwolle is now the first city to certify its urban tree stock on a structural basis, ensuring that harvested wood gets a second life.
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"This certification shows that our urban trees can be a valuable and sustainable resource, without compromising our green environment."
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urban trees as valuable resource
"Trees are incredibly important in our city," says alderman Arjan Spaans. "They provide cooling, improve air quality, and enhance livability. These days, we plant more trees in Zwolle than we remove. But what do you do with harvested trees—how can you use them sustainably? With this certification, we show that our urban trees can also be a valuable and sustainable resource, without compromising our green surroundings."
An independent certifier will conduct annual checks to determine whether Zwolle can retain its Trees Outside Forests designation in the future.
Erik Bakker, green space contract manager at the municipality of Zwolle, is also enthusiastic about the certification opportunity. "As a municipality, we were closely involved in drafting the certification requirements. In
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