In a landmark shift, the NSW Government has expanded its flagship Greening our City urban greening program beyond Greater Sydney for the first time. From August 2025, ten regional councils – Central Coast, Cessnock, Kiama, Lake Macquarie, Maitland, Newcastle, Port Stephens, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven and Wollongong – are now eligible to apply for their share of up to $10 million in greening grants, a significant opportunity to enhance urban tree canopy and liveability in fast‑growing areas.
Since 2019, the initiative has funded 131 greening projects across four grant rounds, planting over 107,000 trees in areas with low canopy and high growth pressure. But until now, the benefits were limited to councils within Greater Sydney.
The program’s expansion brings its benefits to an additional 1.4 million residents. The grants aim to deliver cooler, healthier suburbs by increasing urban canopy and understorey planting where needed most.
Key priorities for this round include:
- Providing tree canopy and biodiverse understorey planting that reduce urban heat, improve liveability, and support biodiversity
- Prioritising areas with low existing canopy and high urban heat, particularly those zoned for low‑ and mid‑rise housing
- Aligning investments with the Biodiversity in Place Framework, the Clean Air Strategy, local greening policies, and integrating Connecting to Country principles.
A new advisory panel – composed of experts from academia, local government and industry – will help guide the program’s rollout.
Applications for the 2025 round opened in early August and close at 5 pm on Friday, 26 September 2025. Grants start from $50,000 (ex GST) per application, with no maximum cap.
Find out more about Greening our City grants.
