Operation Resilient Trees is one of Earthwatch Urban Resiliency's citizen science programs whose goal is to characterize the variation in growth and ecosystem services associated with different tree species in various micro-climates throughout the greater Los Angeles metropolitan region.
The data we are collecting will help:
- Develop tree management plans by identifying which trees will grow best in LA over the next 50 years with increasing climate change.
- Guide improved investment in the right green infrastructure by increasing the confidence by managers in assessments of biomass, CO2 stored, annual CO2 sequestration, and emissions avoided due to urban forests.
- Report on a range of environmental benefits including heat island mitigation and cooling for humans and buildings.
- Determine priority areas for tree planting using tree canopy and impervious data, as well as updated demographic, climate, and air pollution data.
For Operation Resilient Trees, citizen scientists are collecting measurements on 30 different tree species across a 150 mile-long geographical gradient in order to better understand each species’ water use, cooling benefit, and physiological performance in each climate zone.
We need citizens to help find the key species, map them, and measure some key characteristics of each tree.