A Canopy
Grows in Miami Researchers are calculating the scientific value of trees in one lush neighborhood By Chrystian Tejedor ’04, MBA ’15
P
erhaps more than anywhere else in
collaboration between FIU and the National
estimating residential savings in cooling
Miami, the streets of Coconut Grove
Tropical Botanical Garden (NTBG). The
costs. They are also looking at how much
are dappled with sunlight and shadow. Look
Kampong is the historic home of famed
mitigation the trees’ roots provide for flooding
overhead and you’ll see why.
botanical explorer David Fairchild and now
and even sea level rise.
Here, the tree tunnels that stretch over
an urban oasis with more than 1,000 species
Knowing that all trees are not created
highways and streets are the fabric of
of fruit trees, palms, plants and teaching
equal, they also tally the negatives. Does
the community. They’re like the cafecito
collections for botanical study.
the tree produce messy fruits? Might it
windows of Little Havana. Or the beaches that line the coast. These green sentinels have seen Miami
Like Fairchild, Baraloto and the team
fall during a storm? Do its roots threaten
of FIU botanists are focused on studying,
infrastructure? Is it a nonnative species?
preserving and finding innovative uses for
Is it invasive?
grow from backwater village to major
tropical plants. It is work that is carried out
metropolis. Sometimes they’ve been spared
in South Florida, in the jungles of China
determine which trees merit protection and
from the bulldozer and the winds of a
and South America, and other biodiverse
which trees should replace those that fall
hurricane. Sometimes they haven’t. The fate
hotspots throughout the world.
in a hurricane or are removed during
of Coconut Grove’s lush canopy seems to be constantly hanging in the balance. FIU biologist Christopher Baraloto is
As part of the ReLeaf project, the researchers are calculating how much carbon
City officials need these details to
construction projects. “We are excited to partner with a coalition
trees remove from the air and researching
of government and community partners to
leading the Miami Urban ReLeaf Coalition,
possible medicinal value. They are currently
work together and learn about the amazing
a network of local partners mapping and
mapping trees in Coconut Grove, dutifully
resources we have in terms of tree canopy
monitoring trees in Miami’s verdant enclaves.
measuring the circumference of each tree and
in the city,” Baraloto said. “All citizens with
The initiative recently launched in Coconut
estimating its height.
whom we have spoken agree that this is vital
Grove, where the International Center for Tropical Botany is based at the Kampong, a
The researchers are also determining how much shade each tree provides and
work that needs to be completed as soon as possible.” Continues FALL 2019 | 9
