An oxymoron is a phrase that uses seemingly contradictory words. According to Neil Letson, too many people consider ‘urban forestry’ an oxymoron.

“I always hear people describe it as an oxymoron,” said Letson. “How can you have a forest and forestry in urban areas. The answer is, you can. Many cities in Alabama were originally built in a forest and a lot of those trees remain. It’s just a matter of acknowledging the trees in our city collectively are a vital recourse.”

Letson is the assistant director for Forest Management Division – Alabama Forestry Commission. He was the guest speaker at this month’s Tree Committee meeting. Letson spoke on the new grant that was award to Jacksonville.

“Jacksonville received an Urban and Community Forestry Financial Assistance Grant though the Alabama Forestry Commission,” he said. “These are federal funds that the US Forest Service awarded to our agency.”

The Tree Committee plans on using grant funds to assess Jacksonville’s urban forest.

“I see one of the key roles of this Tree Committee is seeing that this resource is managed to meet the needs of this community and the objectives of the future,” Letson said. “That means knowing what you have out there, what kind of shape it’s in, and doing somewhat of an assessment or inventory of your urban forest so you know what you are working with.”

By knowing what state the trees in Jacksonville are in, the City of Jacksonville can know how to move forward in certain projects and how to maintain the local resources.

“This is something we cannot take for granted, “said Letson. “These tress are an essential part of this community.”

Letson said the benefits of a healthy urban forest are more than just enhancing the appearance of the city. From economical benefits to environmental benefits, citizens living in cities with a good urban forest are happier and healthier.

Along with the assessment, the grant allows funds for public education on forestry. The mayor of Jacksonville, Johnny Smith, hopes to see the committee put that into action.

“I think the education point can really tie into the number one objective when we started this,” said Smith. “It was to educated people about what kind of tree to plant where.”

“This project ranked number one on our list,” said Letson. “This is right in line of what we want to see our communities do.”

Letson said he hopes to see this grant bring new life into the urban forestry and Jacksonville’s Tree Committee.