US Forest Service Monitoring Plots: Data Processing and Attribution Project

The United States Forest Service (USFS) monitors urban forest to assess and predict changes in the urban forest resource over time. In Los Angeles County, the USFS Pacific Southwest Research Station monitors approximately 240, 10th acre urban forest monitoring plots. Although USFS has information such as tree canopy, species composition and health, the agency would like to associate supplementary information with the plots. The additional attributes include demographic, property appraisal, socioeconomic, and infrastructure information. CGST staff and students will acquire the necessary datasets covering Los Angeles County, process them as needed, determine the best approach to associate the attributes with the forest monitoring plots, and implement the methodology. Data sources, methodology and other key information will be documented in a brief technical memorandum.