Letter+to+Raleigh+Parks+2008.01.25


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2008 January 25

Parks & Recreation Department 222 W. Hargett St Raleigh, NC 27601**
 * The City of Raleigh

I teach a course called Natural Resources Measurements at NC State University. This spring, we would like to develop an assessment of the ecological value of some portion of Raleigh's urban forest using the Urban Forest Effects (UFORE) model. This model combines data collected in the field with meteorological data to produce a report of:

- the structure of an urban forest, including
 * number of trees
 * species composition
 * % tree cover

- the value of ecosystem services provided by the forest, including
 * pollution removal
 * carbon storage
 * carbon sequestration
 * building energy savings

I am seeking cooperation and assistance for this effort from both the City of Raleigh's Parks & Recreation Division and the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources, Urban Forestry Program. Specifically, I seek from you or your designees:
 * Help defining the scope of the project so that it has maximum utility.
 * Some technical help collecting data, mostly related to helping students identify trees under leaf-off conditions. I envision a training session for this, and perhaps some help in the field during data collection during February and early March.
 * Permission to collect data in Raleigh City Parks, if any of our randomly-selected sample plots are located there. Data collection will be non-invasive and non-destructive (species identification, bole diameter, height, crown diameter, etc).
 * Permission to tell property owners of plots that fall on private land that we are working in collaboration with Raleigh Parks.

I view our work this semester as a pilot effort that will result, ultimately, in a quantitative assessment of the ecological value of Raleigh's urban forest. I believe the result report will be of value to planners and decision-makers, because it will highlight the under-recognized value (in dollars) of the environmental services provided by our urban forest. You have already seen the reports generated for other cities, and I know you recognize their value. This is an opportunity to put Raleigh at the forefront, especially in the Southeastern United States where only Atlanta has been assessed in this manner.

Thank you for considering this request.

Sincerely, / george hess George Hess, Assistant Professor

Approved and supported by / barry goldfarb *NOTE: THIS HAS NOT YET BEEN APPROVED THIS IS JUST A DRAFT Barry Goldfarb, Head, Department of Forestry & Environmental Resources


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