See also SWAT team brochure. (legal-size .pdf flyer)

In 1 or 2 weekend days, trained groups of individuals consisting of Cornell University students and Master Gardeners from Cooperative Extension perform an inventory of your community trees for a fee plus expenses:

• Time Frame: 1 or 2 weekend days
• Cost: less than $3500
• Benefits: useful for communities with less than 2000 street and park trees

What do we offer?

We work with you to establish a management planning process difficult for smaller communities with limited urban forestry budgets. This includes:

• A complete inventory of all community trees in the public right-of-way within your municipal boundaries
• The species distribution, condition, and maintenance needs of these trees
• The location of existing planting spaces available for future plantings
• A list of tree species suitable for future plantings specific to you community
• A quantitative analysis of the ecosystem benefits provided by community trees
• An electronic spreadsheet of inventory data so you can keep it up to date
• A summarized report and presentation of the data
• A resource for future questions

What we need from you to participate in this program

• Someone to be a designated contact person during the process
• A municipal staff person assigned to keep and update the electronic database which will be provided
• Signoff from a public official supporting the project
• Spreadsheet software (Excel or Access)
• Right-of-way information for all streets to be included in the inventory

Cost breakdown

• Student labor: $100 per student per day
• Travel expenses:
• lunch for team
• transportation (@$100/day)
• One day inventory approx. $1200-1750
• Two day inventory approx. $2400-3500

Application

If interested in a SWAT Team street tree inventory, fill out the Tree Inventory Project Application (.pdf)

Helpful information for applying

• Public official/person to act as liaison between municipality and the SWAT Team
• Municipal employee/staff person designated to maintain database
• Estimated number of trees:
1. Count the number of blocks or miles of streets within municipal boundaries
2. Calculate 10% of total
3. Drive (randomly) along calculated number of blocks or miles counting trees
4. Multiply count by 10
• Current community forestry efforts:
• Community tree board
• Street tree inventory
• 'Tree City' designation
• Street tree ordinance
• Community tree management plan

Note: The SWAT Team does not do hazard ratings for trees; it flags trees for further inspection by a certified arborist.