Beat the Heat

Funding for this project provided by the Inflation Reduction Act and the USDA Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation.

Tell the Heat to

Beat It.

Areas with less tree canopy are 10 degrees hotter or more – a serious health hazard. Alarmingly, Columbia’s tree canopy shrank by nearly a quarter between 2005 and 2019.

You can help with Beat the Heat – Plant a Tree.

Here’s a Cool Opportunity 

If you own a Columbia property, you could receive a shade tree at no cost, plus a rain diaper to reduce maintenance.

Tell your neighbors. Tell your friends.

The goal is to plant 1,750 new shade trees over the next five years. 

Free Lunch. Free Tree

Save the date! Enjoy a great meal at our next event on October 19, 2024. Learn how to select, plant and maintain a tree from an expert. Sign up and walk away with a voucher for your free shade tree.

City of Columbia staff will deliver it to your property in November at no cost to you.  

Can’t make it to the luncheon? No problem.

Why Plant a Shade Tree?

Trees are so chill:

  • Trees help to lower stress levels and reduce heart and lower-respiratory-tract illnesses (Donovan et al. 2013).

  • Tree shade can reduce annual A/C energy by 10%-50% (Pandit and Laband 2010). 

  • Leaves capture airborne particulates, air pollution, and carbon dioxide (Sander et al. 2010) 

What trees are available?

During the event, you can talk to an expert and select your first, second, and third choice from a variety of trees.

Someone will contact you if your choices are not available.  

Beat the Heat is a partnership between the City of Columbia, Public Works, Forestry & Beautification Division, and Columbia Green, a nonprofit whose mission is to optimize the environment to enhance the quality of life in the greater Columbia area.   

The Inflation Reduction Act and the USDA Forest Service, Urban and Community Forestry Program, in partnership with the Arbor Day Foundation provided $290,000 for this program. Columbia Green contributes additional funding and resources.