What first started as a research effort to collect an accurate account of all the trees at Cornell’s campus may turn out to be useful in the University’s plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

Over the summer, a tree inventory project was conducted by Fred Cowett, a Ph.D. student in horticulture, and Chris Gruber, a third-year graduate student in landscape architecture. In the course of two months, the project identified 7,205 trees, ranging across 225 species, throughout Cornell’s campus.

A comprehensive and accurate inventory, however, is far from complete. These numbers are continually changing due to construction, such as that of Milstein Hall, which led to the removal of some trees along University Avenue. Cowett said that updates will be conducted periodically to ensure that the information continues to be current and relevant.

A software program called STRATUM also determined the estimated values of carbon sequestration and carbon dioxide mitigation of the trees. This information would be useful in determining the feasibility of President David Skorton’s proclamation for carbon neutrality at Cornell by 2050.

Cornell’s trees have been determined to be an integral part of the University’s ability to achieve this goal. According to the University, campus trees store “approximately 15 million pounds of carbon, and take in 740,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year that would have otherwise been contributors to greenhouse warming.”

Gruber was optimistic about Skorton’s goal for carbon neutrality by 2050.

“2050 sounds like they may be able to actually do it. It is a nice step in the right direction and would set a great example for other schools,” Gruber stated in an e-mail. “I have heard that the Grounds Department is already putting into action creating ‘no mow’ zones where they let the grass grow long and only mow a few times a years. This saves time, money and fuel.”

The inventory has also been proven useful as Cornell strives to be a Tree Campus USA college, a recognition sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation, a non-government organization that promotes the protection of trees.

Tree Campus USA colleges are universities that “effectively manage their campus trees, develop connectivity with the community beyond campus borders to foster healthy, urban forests, and strive to engage their student population utilizing service learning opportunities centered on campus and community forestry efforts,” as defined by the ArborDay website.

A tree inventory of the campus is a required factor for Cornell to be named a Tree Campus USA college. Although this recognition is an underlying motivator, Gruber said that there are more reasons for constructing such an inventory.

“Cornell wanted to quantify the worth of the trees for aesthetic purposes, helping to shade buildings, controlling storm water and holding the soil together, among other environmental benefits,” Gruber said.

In addition to obtaining the number of trees at Cornell, the species, diameter and GPS coordinates of each individual tree were also logged.

Identifying the campus’ tree species could be very important, explained Cowett. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, the Dutch elm disease destroyed the large American elm population at Cornell. The American elm, however, turns out to be an important species because it is effective in sequestering carbon dioxide. If tree species had been more diverse at that time, the environmental impact of the Dutch elm disease could have been mitigated. Species diversification on Cornell’s campus is therefore closely monitored today to avoid repeating mistakes of the past.

Although trees play a significant role in environmental protection, Cowett suggested that sustainability is about more than just trees.

“Tree people get all excited about the role of trees,” Cowett said. “It’s certainly an important piece, but it’s just one piece of the puzzle.”

The project was conducted under the direction of Prof. Nina Bassuk, horticulture and director of the Urban Horticulture Institute.