Tree City USA and Growth Awards are presented during the Arbor Day ceremony by the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources (NCDENR) to the Mayor. Wake Forest has been a Tree City USA for 32 years and has received the Growth Award for 16 consecutive years.
The National Arbor Day Foundation, in cooperation with the US Forest Service and the National Association of State Foresters, recognizes towns and cities across America that meet the standards of the Tree City USA Program. To be recognized as a Tree City USA – the towns and cities must meet 4 standards.
- Standard 1: A Tree Board or Department
- Standard 2: A Community Tree Ordinance
- Standard 3: A Community Forestry Program with an Annual Budget of at least $2 per capita.
- Standard 4: An Arbor Day Observance and Proclamation
To qualify for the Growth Award, a community must have spent at least as much on its community forestry program the present year as it did the previous year.