These technologies have a wide range of applications, including remote sensing for agricultural and forestry purposes. The Centre will provide exciting opportunities for PhD students to work with ArborCarbon in this area. For more information, please click here, or contact Paul Barber at ArborCarbon.

ArborCarbon scientists have co-authored publications that have investigated the link between bioclimate events like drought to the decline of eucalypt forests in Western Australi.

Key points

• Some trees can shrink the width of their water transport vessels in response to lack of water
• Eucalypts are not able to do this which puts them at risk of developing air bubbles in their vessels
• This would make them vulnerable to extreme heatwaves and drought due to climate change”

Read the Article on ABC Science

Excellent article and podcast by Antony Funnell on Radio National’s, Future Tense about the underestimated power of plants.

Funnell  “ventures to the frontiers of plant science to meet researchers who believe the power of botanical organisms has long been underestimated.”

ArborCarbon scientists undertook a study over 2 years based on aerial surveys using multi-spectral, high resolution imaging. The results were startling and concerning.

The majority of councils within the ‘leafy western suburbs’ have experienced a loss in canopy cover over the  two-year period.

The study showed that the hottest areas in the western suburbs had little vegetation and an excess of sand. Examples include Campbell Barracks, Mt Claremont, the area south of UWA, immediately west of Shenton bushland, the QEII medical centre and Sir Charles Gardner Hospital – and around Subiaco Square.

Some of the coolest areas are, of course, where there is a body of water like Lakes Claremont and Monger. Other cool areas include suburbs within Subiaco, the Wembley golf complex, and Perry Lakes Reserve.

I am passionate about the need to maintain and foster tree growth in urban areas. Replacement with young trees is not the solution as they could take 50 years to mature before the same shade and cooling benefits are realised.

We need to embrace trees and the benefits they provide, rather than seeing them as a nuisance or being scared that a tree will fail simply because it is a big tree.

The tree loss shown in this study is a major concern as we know that canopy cover is directly linked to the Urban Heat Island Effect. We are compounding the problem by not conserving our canopy and this impacts the health of people in our communities.

To read more please read the full story on WAtoday.