Ten native shade trees stand on the playgrounds of two Canal neighborhood elementary schools after a volunteer crew planted them Aug. 22.

Canal Alliance planning fellow Daisy Alvarez organized the planting at Bahia Vista Elementary School and San Pedro Elementary School, bringing together 20 volunteers that included local families, Rotary Club members, school district facilities staff and San Rafael City Councilmember Maika Llorens Gulati, according to a Canal Alliance blog post published Sept. 9.

The trees are Coast Live Oaks and Western Sycamores, both native broad-canopy species. Seven went into the ground at Bahia Vista and three at San Pedro.

Bahia Vista's student zones had just 3% tree canopy coverage before the planting, compared with an 8% average across the San Rafael City Schools District, according to ArcGIS mapping data cited by Canal Alliance. San Pedro sat at 7%.

Once the new trees and recent campus construction mature, Canal Alliance projects Bahia Vista's shade will reach 10%.

A Green Schoolyards America study found California's K-12 public school grounds carry a median of 6.4% canopy coverage in student zones. Canal Alliance noted that urban forestry experts recommend 30% canopy coverage for schoolyards.

At Bahia Vista, five trees were planted west of the newly installed turf field to shade benches, the playground and the main blacktop. Two more went near the south playground to cover the basketball court and part of the field. At San Pedro, two trees fill an open patch between the turf field and the school garden, and a third covers outdoor benches where students sit during lessons.

Alvarez spent months building partnerships and navigating setbacks, including campus renovations at Bahia Vista during July that complicated planning. She coordinated site visits and logistics with Dave Pedroli, director of facilities and maintenance at San Rafael City Schools District, and presented the project to the San Rafael Harbor Rotary Club. Catherine Wolfers from Refugia Marin assessed potential planting sites at San Pedro.

Devil Mountain Nursery in Petaluma donated and delivered the ten 15-gallon trees. Sloat Garden Center in Kentfield donated ten bags of planting soil. Canal Alliance credited the effort to a broad coalition that also included the City of San Rafael, ReLeaf Petaluma, Sanzuma, Raices del Canal, Sustainable San Rafael and the San Rafael Federation of Neighborhoods.

In its blog post, Canal Alliance described the Canal neighborhood as historically overlooked and disproportionately affected by environmental injustices including sea-level rise and poor air quality.

The trees will need years to reach full canopy spread. No follow-up planting date has been announced.