Managing North Carolina State University's Urban Forest
ABSTRACT
In September 1999, Hurricane Fran ravaged the Raleigh area and destroyed hundreds of trees on the North Carolina State University (NSCU) campus. The Federal Emergency Management Agency subsequently reimbursed NCSU for the lost trees because the university was able to provide precise documentation of tree loss based on an inventory maintained by the Division of Grounds and Automotive Services. This experience demonstrated of the value of NCSU's tree inventory and was the impetus for initiating a partnership with the Center for Earth Observation to create a more comprehensive Urban Forest Inventory and Management Program using geographic information systems (GIS) technologies. At the time of Hurricane Fran, the university's tree inventory database consisted of separate AutoCAD maps of eighteen landscape care areas with an attached Paradox database file containing individual tree information. When viewing information on the computer, only one area could be views at a time. To create a master database containing all campus trees, the spatial and tabular data were converted to ArcView shapefile format and then realigned to match the campus survey map of streets and buildings. Currently, the urban forest database includes tree species, size, health, and pruning needs for over 3,000 trees. The ArcView GIS urban forest database has proven to be a very efficient management tool. Tree data can be displayed with other data layers such as streets, buildings, and walkways. Spatial analyses are used to identify trees in need of pruning, estimate budget needs, establish routes for watering newly installed trees, and produce maps for a variety of maintenance projects. Future plans for NCSU's urban forest database include the addition of other data layers, such as planting beds, turf areas and shrubs. These data will provide a more complete picture of the natural environment and will allow managers to examine relationships between trees and the surrounding area. The landscape services staff also plans to calculate the benefits of the campus urban forest using American Forests CITYgreen software. The database will eventually become part of the NCSU Libraries data holdings to facilitate access by students and university personnel. The Urban Forest Inventory and Management Program has substantially improved the university's ability to manage both its natural and built environments.
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