The campus of Cornell University has more than 7000 trees, and they're storing millions of pounds of carbon, worth more than half a million dollars to the university. A comprehensive tree inventory was recently conducted by two graduate students, as the university considers how to implement its pledge to achieve climate neutrality by 2050.
The survey found that Cornell has 300 species of trees, and the most common one is the red oak, comprising more than 10 percent of the total. The trees on the main campus store 15 millions pounds of carbon, sequester 740,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually, and provide yearly ecosystem benefits totaling more than $570,000. And Cornell needs to take care of what it has, as the survey concluded that it would cost about $19 million to replace all the trees.
Fred Cowett of the horticulture department, one of survey researchers, said the survey results will be used as part of the campus climate plan. Cowett and a colleague used a software program called STRATUM, which estimates energy savings, carbon sequestration, water mitigation and the replacement value of trees.
The oldest tree at Cornell is a 350 year old white oak; the biggest one is a pignut hickory with a diameter of 79 inches.
(image: Cornell University)
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