With our communities and landscapes changing due to climate change, it's important that we modernize our approach for assessing and monitoring our public trees. Tree inventories are evolving from the early days of pen and paper and moving into the world of machine learning and artificial intelligence.
In July 2023, Davey Resource Group (DRG) announced a strategic partnership with greehill to deliver Smart Tree inventories to cities across the U.S. using LiDAR, high-resolution photography, and machine learning. Since the announcement, DRG and greehill have taken their technology on the road to conduct workshops across the country.
We traveled to 18 cities across the U.S. meeting with more than 380 attendees in person and virtually. During these seminars, we presented the smart tree inventory technology and allowed attendees to see it in action through live demonstrations. The live demonstrations helped bring the technology from conceptual to tangible, showing the attendees that “the future is now,” and the technology is readily available for use.
With grants from the Inflation Reduction Act being released during the seminar series, along with regional and state grants reopening, it further showcased how potential users can leverage funding opportunities to implement the smart tree inventories into their upcoming urban forestry management efforts.
The Future is Now
Seminar attendees and potential users were able to get a close look at how the technology creates 4D digital twins of trees and uses machine learning to identify them. Along with the demonstration, we were able to share how the technology can be used to tackle the challenges of climate change, equity, risk reduction, and more.
With smart tree inventories, users can make the Right Decision at the Right Time on the Right Tree. By having a smart tree inventory you will get:
- Current, accurate up-to-date tree inventory
- Objective metrics
- 5 high resolution photos
- Updated street view
- Ability to perform remote inspections
Smart tree inventories also capture the precise measurements on diameter at breast height, tree height, canopy size, and leaf area index of each tree, allowing for improved monitoring of growth towards canopy goals of public trees.
Get ready to elevate the management of your community’s urban forest by adding a smart tree inventory to your urban forest management plan. To learn more about smart tree inventories, view a recorded webinar or contact your local DRG office.
