Title
Authorizing the City through its Parks and Recreation Department to enter into an agreement, which requires mutual indemnification, with Green Cities Accord to collaborate on Tree Planting project - City of Saint Paul Planting Project 2021-2023, to help expand the City's public urban forest.
Body
WHEREAS, The Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Department is the steward of the public urban forest in Saint Paul; and
WHEREAS, There are more than 10,000 vacant planting sites throughout the urban forest in Saint Paul which indicates a compelling need for expansion of the public tree canopy; and
WHEREAS, Green Cities Accord, previously known as Green Cities Minneapolis, is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 conservancy with a mission to foster climate resilient communities through investments in tree canopy infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, Green Cities Accord will collaborate and partner with the City of Saint Paul to establish a carbon offset program as means of funding continued tree planting and ongoing care of trees through the sale of carbon and environmental credits; and
WHEREAS, Green Cities Accord has a similar partnership with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board that has yielded positive results for the public urban forest in Minneapolis, and the project in Saint Paul would be administered in a similar way; and
WHEREAS, the Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Department and Green Cities Accord seek to enter into a Project Implementation Agreement simultaneously to the Agreement to Collaborate on Tree Planting Project - City of Saint Paul Planting Project 2021-2023; and
WHEREAS, the City is the Tree Owner and Green Cities Accord is the Project Operator in the Agreement to Collaborate on Tree Planting Project - City of Saint Paul Planting Project 2021-2023; and
WHEREAS, On behalf of the Tree Owner (City), the Project Operator (Green Cities Accord) is collaborating with the Urban Forest Carbon Registry, doing business as City Forest Credits, a Washington non-profit corpo...
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