Browsing by Subject "i-Tree"

Recognizing and evaluating the benefits of trees is important for creating sustainable, safe and recreational urban spaces. i-Tree Eco software is developed by USDA for evaluation and valuation of ecosystem services of urban trees and forests. The objective of this research was to find out how does the quality of collected data affect i-Tree Eco modelling. Two different types of data and modelling results were compared in this research. All trees of the park Kupittaanpuisto in Turku were measured and evaluated according to the i-Tree guidance in late summer 2018 (later inventory). The contrasting data was selected from the tree register maintained by the city of Turku (later tree register). i-Tree Eco models several ecosystem services, of which carbon storage, carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were analyzed in this research. The software estimates the structural value of the trees considering the land use and tree condition as well. The results show that the quality of data affects modelling results. Based on the total inventory data, the amounts of carbon sequestration, avoided surface water runoff and pollution removal were higher than the amounts modelled according to the tree register data. On the other hand, the structural value and carbon storage were bigger based on the register data than on the total inventory measurements. Lack of canopy dimensions and estimates of canopy condition had an impact on the modelling results. According to the total inventory, there were 1315 trees in the Kupittaanpuisto (ca. 34 ha), the structural value was approx. 2 430 000 €, carbon storage was 563 t, annual carbon sequestration 12 t, annual avoided surface water runoff 811 m3 and annual pollution removal 307 kg. On grounds of this research it can be stated that canopy measurements and canopy condition estimates are needed to make more accurate estimates of ecosystem services when using i-Tree Eco. This research showed that trees in the Kupittaanpuisto produce many ecosystem services and the trees are valuable. In the future, the results can be used as a reference for other research projects on ecosystem services of urban trees in the Nordic countries.