14
THE DAVEY BULLETIN
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September/October 2020
VISION
CHICAGO TREE CENSUS TO COUNT MILLIONS OF TREES
The Morton Arboretum with support from the Illinois
Department of Natural Resources is conducting a 2020
Chicago Regional Tree Census with the help of Davey
Resource Group (DRG).
This project will count and assess trees across the seven-
county Chicago region. Morton Arboretum did a similar
study in 2010 and this current study will show how the
region's trees have changed over the last 10 years.
The field work for this project kicked off in June to assess
1,600 plots, which are each a tenth of an acre. DRG is using
i-Tree Eco to perform inspections on all the trees and shrubs
that fall within these plots.
"It's a very unique project because of the size of it," said
Pete Sorensen, area manager, DRG. "We've done projects
like this, but it's usually consisting of sometimes 200 to 300
plots. Doing this in a seven-county region, we cover such a
wide variety of land types from rural farm fields to extremely
urban downtown Chicago and everything in between."
One of the goals of the project is to find out the prevalence
of invasive species, like honeysuckle and buckthorn, within
the region, Sorensen said.
"The client is interested in overall tree canopy diversity of
species across the area, but also how that's changed now
that emerald ash borer has moved through and other tree
diseases have had impacts," he said. "They want to know
if more native trees have moved in where those other trees
have died, or are invasive species taking over."
The project is set to conclude this fall. When the census
ends, the data will be available publicly. Partner organizations
like the Chicago Regional Tree Initiative will have free access.
"Their big plan is to do a census every 10 years, and we
are hopeful it's a partnership that Davey can continue with
the Arboretum in the future," Sorensen said. "It's a cool
thing knowing that all the data that is being collected is
being used to benefit the Chicago area."
Each team conducting the census has one DRG employee and an intern
from the Student Conservation Association. They are a not-for-profit and
these students help protect and restore national parks, marine sanctuaries,
cultural landmarks and community green spaces in all 50 states.
Pete Sorensen noted that this has been a great project during the pandemic because it's easy to social distance. They are working in teams
of two and wearing face masks. They also can work outside and spread out in the plots to maintain a six-foot distance. Sorensen said he
believes that's been a positive thing for homeowners to see our employees following the COVID-19 protocols.
