Berlin sets goal to double number of trees by 2040

Berlin’s Climate Adaptation Act has set a goal to double the number of trees in the capital to over 1 million by 2040. Campaigners are urging the local government to get planting.

1 million trees in Berlin by 2040

The House of Representatives in Berlin has approved the Climate Adaptation Act (Klimaanpassungsgesetz) and is the first German federal state to approve such a law. As part of the Klimaanpassungsgesetz, local authorities will double the number of trees in the city from around 440.000 to 1 million by 2040, according to a report by Die Zeit.

The move is largely thanks to the BaumEntscheid citizens’ initiative, which was started in August 2023 and gathered over 33.000 signatures over the course of a year. The new law outlines that Berlin should have a tree at least every 15 metres and that all Berliners should be able to reach a green space of at least one hectare within 500 metres of where they live. 

The plan to reach 1 million trees in the city is expected to cost a total of 3,2 billion euros, 2 billion of which will come from Berlin’s portion of the climate fund from the federal government.

Speaking as the law was passed, BaumEntscheid spokesperson Heinrich Strößenreuther urged politicians not to dilly-dally with planting the seeds: “One doesn’t have to be a botanist to understand that this law will not grow trees on its own.”

Berlin trees give us life

According to the official Berlin website, on average, one street tree supplies 10 people per day with oxygen. The average Berlin street tree has 30.000 leaves, which means "30,000 times more protection from the sun and rain”. Leaves also help to absorb noise pollution, and by releasing moisture, help to cool the air on a hot day.

And it’s not just the hot weather they protect us from, but heavy rain and wind. “If trees are planted in dense rows or groups, the shelter effect or “wind shade” they achieve is 10 to 15 times their height,” the city’s website explains.