Rep. Williams: Why No State Tree Give-Away In R.I. Cities?

PROVIDENCE, RI — A state representative from Providence is commending state environmental officials for handing out 1,000 free trees for Rhode Island residents to plant, but she’s questioning why none of the four pick-up spots are located in the state’s urban core.

Within the month of May, the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management will distributed free saplings to residents in Richmond, Bristol, North Kingstown and Johnston — but the state agency has scheduled no pickup spots in places such as Providence, East Providence, North Providence, Pawtucket, or Central Falls.

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Rep. Anastasia P. Williams (D-Dist. 9, Providence) said she commends RIDEM for running a program that provides beautiful trees for the state’s neighborhoods, communities and homes. “The positive environmental and community-building aspects of trees in our neighborhoods is an undeniable fact and I am happy that RIDEM is continuing to make this a priority,” she wrote.

But while supportive of the program, now in its 12th year, she says she has to ask why none of the pickup locations are located in areas of the state that are the most in need of additional trees.

“In fact, going over news reports from the past couple of years, this program has never had tree pickups in the urban core,” Williams wrote. “Like every year, the community of color, the poor, the vulnerable – those residing in our urban core – have to jump through extra hoops in order to benefit and utilize services that the rest of the state expects to receive without request like clockwork annually, taking these services for granted in the process.”

“Wouldn’t it make more sense to plant additional trees where they are needed most? Whether its access to proper education, nutritious food, or our state’s natural resources, and even the recently passed Act on Climate, residents in our urban core are once again being overlooked and left out of the equation and frankly, it’s very tiring and unacceptable to have to continuously point out these reoccurring inequalities that arise on a daily and yearly basis for the same people and organizations every time,” Williams said.