Master's Projects, Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation
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Browsing Master's Projects, Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation by Subject "Arboriculture"
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- Growing Trees in a Gravel Bed Stormwater Retention System as a Novel Approach to Stormwater Management in Urban SitesSprouls, Jason M. (2020-05-19)Dense urban areas are typically covered by impervious surfaces used to construct roadways, parking lots, and sidewalks. Sealing over soils with impervious surfaces increases stormwater runoff volume and reduces water quality downstream. Green infrastructure technologies are a commonly used stormwater control measure that can capture stormwater runoff generated from impervious surfaces. The inclusion of woody and herbaceous plants in green infrastructure mitigates stormwater runoff through canopy interception, increased soil infiltration, and evapotranspiration. However, planting trees situated amongst impervious surfaces remains difficult because they suffer from slow growth rates and shortened lifespans due to the soil compaction necessary to create a stable pavement, which diminishes the water storage capacity of soils and hampers root system development. These green infrastructure technologies in ultra-urban areas also present extremely harsh growing environments for trees due to soil moisture extremes, inhospitable microclimates, and pollution contamination. The subject of this paper is a gravel bed stormwater retention system that was developed to address the combined needs of a stable hardscape, belowground stormwater storage, and tree root development to lead to large, long-lived trees that both intercept precipitation and transpire captured runoff. The design specifications of this system are intended to be low-cost, technically simple, and highly adaptable based on site configuration and intended stormwater capture. This paper describes a pilot project on the Virginia Tech campus that constructed the first multi-tree gravel bed stormwater retention system, which aims to evaluate the functionality and feasibility of the system. This pilot study will raise awareness of trees in green infrastructure systems and provide information about the cost-effectiveness and practicality of the gravel bed stormwater retention system. Also included in this paper is an investigation of the ecophysiological and morphological adaptations that tree species confer to adapt to the unique hydrologic regime and substrate found in green infrastructure systems. Through a rigorous review of literature, a species suitability model was populated by 75 tree species. The model stratified species into groups based on foliage type and mature size to provide a diverse palette of species to allow practitioners to configure the gravel bed stormwater retention system based on cultural conditions, aboveground space limitations, and site-specific environmental challenges.
- Identifying Key Challenges and Opportunities in Urban and Community Forestry in California: Insights from California PractitionersChristensen, Brittany (2023-12)This study builds upon previous studies on the state of urban and community forestry in California and expands on a recent nationwide survey effort to assess the economic impacts of urban and community forestry on a regional basis, across multiple, interacting sectors. By conducting a similar assessment of issues, challenges, and opportunities, this study adds to a growing body of knowledge about urban and community forestry. Using a mixed methods sampling approach, we recruited a total of 189 survey participants from the following sectors: nonprofit organizations (n=37), private green businesses (n=106), and public municipal governments (n=46). Challenges related to management operations, climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, workforce diversity, and equitable access to urban forests were compared among sectors to find statistically significant differences in perceptions of challenges and to provide insights into the challenges needing the greatest focus and the opportunities for collaboration among the sectors. The greatest operational challenges across all sectors are the lack of monetary resources to conduct urban forestry activities and the lack of public awareness or cooperation. The nonprofit sector revealed heightened awareness of climate change impacts and a greater focus on improving workforce diversity and equitable access to urban forests for underserved communities.
- Landscape Tree Inventory and Management Plan for the United Company Corporate Campus, Bristol, VirginiaWorrell, William (Virginia Tech, 2010-04-27)The United Company’s corporate headquarters resides on 65 acres in a residential area just east of downtown Bristol, Virginia. The main office complex on the south side of campus is accented by a mixed landscape of trees, shrubs, and lawns. In 2008, foresters with Virginia Cooperative Extension and Virginia Tech were contracted to develop a landscape tree management plan for the corporate campus. A complete tree inventory was conducted in summer 2008 to assess campus tree composition and maintenance needs. The inventory provided the basis for developing the management plan, which describes the priorities, goals, and objectives that should guide landscape tree management on the United Company corporate campus over the next decade and beyond. The inventory enumerated 630 landscape trees consisting of 67 different species. Flowering dogwood, yellow-poplar, and eastern white pine were the three most abundant species, each accounting for about 15% of the total population. The campus landscape is dominated by mature and geriatric trees. Despite the “graying” of the tree population, it is in fair to good condition overall. Structural defects that may threaten tree stability were commonly observed in the inventoried trees. Fortunately, most of these defects were mild to moderate and do not pose a significant threat to the landscape. However, critical defects were observed in several trees and should be attended to immediately. An assortment of disorders that may threaten tree health were also observed in campus trees. Prevalent disorders included trunk wounds, soil compaction, buried root collars, and inadequate mulching. These disorders can threaten tree health and should be addressed through a systematic tree maintenance program. In this paper, general recommendations for tree planting, maintenance, and removal are provided based on the primary goal of attaining a safe, attractive, and sustainable campus forest. In addition, specific management recommendations are provided for 11 critical-priority trees, 8 notable trees, and 3 prevalent species groups. Finally, an appendix has been assembled at the end of this report to provide definitions on common tree care terms and guidance on common tree care practices.
- Reducing the Conflict between Trees and Overhead Utility Lines through Public Awareness and EducationMatiuk, Jonathan D. (Virginia Tech, 2016-09-08)Trees in the built environment often have the potential to grow large enough to touch overhead utility lines, creating a dangerous interaction between the urban forest and utility infrastructure. The purpose of this project is to address the prevalent conflicts between urban forests and utility lines by raising awareness and educating the public of the seriousness of the conflicts and of the possible solutions to manage the conflicts. By creating additional resources that can be used to educate or spread awareness of the importance in preventing the conflict by planting trees of appropriate size and form, homeowners and utility companies could save money on regular tree pruning, tree removal, and costly infrastructure repair that is passed on to the consumer through increased electricity costs. The first product of the project takes advantage of an established online horticultural and arboricultural community webpage, called Plants Map, where the full inventories of five Virginia “utility arboreta” have been uploaded. The utility arboreta were designed to illustrate appropriate trees to plant near and underneath utility lines. Previously, the arboreta displayed limited information on each tree. Plants Map allows visitors of the arboreta to use their smart phones to open a webpage displayed on plant tags that will be purchased for each tree. The second product is a newly written publication for Virginia Cooperative Extension that discusses the necessity for conflicting trees to be removed or pruned, that removing conflicting trees and replacing them with appropriate trees is typically the most cost effective solution, and that trees 25 feet or shorter in height at maturity are the most appropriate to plant underneath utility lines. These two products combine to provide the means for the general public to gain an appreciation of the dangers of tree and utility line conflicts and that planting small trees instead of large ones near utility lines has the potential to save significant amounts of money in future tree care.