City Of Tulsa, OK
Davey Resource Group helped the city of Tulsa, OK, re-green its footprint through a concerted tree planting program organized by a local non-profit.
Project Narrative:
When the City of Tulsa lost 20,000 trees in a 2007 ice storm, the community saw it as an opportunity to re-green Tulsa through a concerted tree planting program organized by local non-profit—Up with Trees. DRG partnered with the non-profit to conduct an i-Tree Eco sample inventory, conduct GIS analysis of county-wide groundcover, and stratify the data to answer key management questions about the quantity, quality, and distribution of tree canopy.
“The 300 i-Tree sample plots were stratified by land use and by city, so stakeholders could view canopy variance based on these parameters. The inventory led to the development of an Urban Forestry Master Plan.”
Rebuilding Essential Urban Tree Canopy
The i-Tree Eco assessment was an essential foundational element for a larger planning effort. i-Tree estimated county-wide tree canopy at 18% of ground cover, and established trees’ value at $7.29 billion. Based on this analysis, community input, and industry best management practices, a 20-year Urban Forest Master Plan was developed for the city, with goals of planting 15,000 trees per year, and increasing canopy cover from 26% to 30%.
By 2017, 10,000 trees had been planted. City and community leaders have continued to develop strategic plans to guide ongoing tree planting.