University of Minnesota prof maps tree cover for city planning - Minneapolis, MN

U prof maps trees for city planning | mndaily.com - Serving the University of Minnesota Community Since 1900

More than 30 percent of Minneapolis is covered in tree canopy, but there’s room for twice that.

Areas with housing currently have the highest tree canopy percentage and provide the most potential for more trees, according to a survey conducted by University of Minnesota professor Marvin Bauer and graduate students Don Kilberg and Molly Martin.

Adding more trees in both urban and suburban environments would not only help to beautify the area, but help reduce storm water runoff and conserve energy, the researchers said in the report.

In the case of energy conservation, Bauer gave an example of trees providing shade during the summer, thus reducing the need for air conditioning.

Bauer, director of the University’s Remote Sensing and Geospatial Analysis Laboratory, got a contract with the city of Minneapolis to study tree cover.