The City of Gastonia is conducting a citywide inventory of all trees at City facilities and in City parks and rights of ways. The City’s first tree inventory was done 15 years ago and has not been done since.
Consultant Davey Tree was hired to complete the work, paid for with a $15,000 grant from the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Urban and Community Forestry Grant Program Division. The City arborist and urban forestry employees are managing the project.
The tree inventory will list the location, size, species, diameter and condition of each tree on City property. In addition, it will identify trees with a priority for pruning or removal, help plan for future tree planting, and provide recommendations for maintaining healthy trees. The information is collected via GPS technology and displayed using mapping software, making it easy for staff to access on mobile and office devices. The City’s previous tree inventory was done on paper, making it difficult to maintain. The original inventory showed about 11,000 trees. The City is expecting around 12,000 to 13,000 trees in this inventory.
