Developments in Technology For Tree Strategies and Management
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Technology is moving at pace across all sectors including our own but is the sector keeping up?
When demonstrating new technology for the sector I am still surprised by how many potential clients are out in the field using pen, paper and weather writers only to then head back to the office to “write things up” using Word or Excel and sometimes CAD or Geographical Information System (GIS) packages. In a time when demands for our services are only increasing this double handling of information is not efficient.
At the same time the sector is struggling to encourage new entrants into the sector, is the lack of technology take up stopping the sector encouraging more younger people into the sector and slowing us down? Imagine yourself as a new entrant searching for a career or doing work experience only to be given a pen, paper and a weather writer, it’s not a great look. If you are a new entrant then any opportunity you get to learn about GIS and systems you should embrace and then when you start a new role don’t be afraid to show your new teams and managers what you have learnt and can do. There is probably a good chance that what you have learnt may make you an expert in your team, and so whilst your team can help you learn about more of the practical side and dealing with the public, you have the opportunity to help your new team modernise.
Investing in technology may seem daunting whether you’re a new entrant to the sector or have been in the sector a while, when I studied Geography in Brighton in the late 1990s GIS was in its infancy. Few consultants were using it or able to afford the licenses and what I was being taught in a university computer lab seemed very far removed from any practical job. But systems have now moved on to be more agile and easy to use and a good system should easily switch to work on a desktop, mobile or laptop/tablet. Any good system should also offer to train you to a good standard, and there are now lots of part day courses from beginner to more experienced from places such as the Field Studies Council to help you.
A lot of GIS information is now also publicly accessible so you click on some of the links provided in this article and have a play.
Tree Mapping
Tree mapping across Local Authorities is becoming more and more important to be able to effectively manage your tree stock. It also allows you to manage and engage with teams or contractors working on the ground who can record when works have been completed, including adding photos to allow you to audit works effectively. With an ever increasing risk of pest and disease outbreaks being able to work out where potential host trees are has never been more easy.
Its also now possible to link systems using API’s (Application Programming Interface) to pull information between systems so look for systems that best meet what you do as a team.
Canopy Mapping at Scale
There has been a recent push for Councils to adopt tree strategies and see how trees fit into wider Local Nature Recovery Strategies. Good strategies will include information on tree management, tree planting targets and at a wider scale a push to set a tree canopy goal. GIS can help with these in terms of setting targets, data is now available from companies such as Bluesky with their national trees and hedgerow maps. This data picks up any tree or scrub over 4 metres and this can then be used with other data sets, to allow you to work out what is the real potential planting across a geographical region (including pubic and private land).
We recently finished a study where the Council had aspirations to set a 30% target but having removed top grades of agricultural land from the map, this only left the potential to plant 20%, this is the target now being adopted. GIS also allows you to bring in other information such as pollution, heat island effects and stormwater abatement, to show you where you should be prioritising based on these or other factors (https://uk.pg-cloud.com/WNC/).
Engagement with Volunteers and the Public
We are finding that our customers are looking to engage more and more with volunteers and the public, both in terms of collecting information as well as starting to share information about the benefits of what we do. A good example is CIC Birmingham Tree People (BTP), set up in 2016 they run the UK’s largest Urban Forestry Volunteer Scheme to manage Birmingham’s Urban Forest.
Most people have a smart phone and BTP staff train the volunteers how to use their phones to record information out in the field. They have designed a form within their system to collect basic information which volunteers can be trained on in less than half a day.
BTP Volunteers then go out to record new tree planting locations, do tree inspections on newly planted trees which is then fed back to the Council and their contractor. Recently they have been setting up tree trails which are being shared with health practitioners to encourage more people to exercise. Each tree trail has around 30 trees recorded with a map linked to each park, and information about the trees including photos and a plan to help the public navigate the park. The number of steps taken is estimated and GPs can prescribe different trails to patients to encourage them to get out and about more.
Parks and Countryside Management
Whilst this article has focused on trees from a GIS perspective all aspects of Parks and Countryside management can now easily be brought into a GIS system, from daily vehicle checks, to invasive species management, management of footpaths and assets. From a GIS perspective as long as your assets can be turned into dot, line or polygon then you can use GIS to manage them.
As a last thought don’t be put off by these changes and use any opportunity you have to engage and try new technology in the long run it will help your career and business. If you want to know more about any of the information above then please get in touch we will be at the APF show and also Saltex later this year:
Russell Horsey MICFor - Chartered Arboriculturalist
07906625472
https://planitgeo.com/treeplotter/
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