Comparing ecosystem benefits with Treezilla
Investigation of environmental benefits of different types of tree.
Background and nature of the task
This activity is based on Treezilla, a database of UK trees. If you are unfamiliar with this website, you might like to do the activity on 'Treezilla: map the trees in your street' first.
Trees provide environmental benefits such as improving air quality in towns, moderating air temperature and capturing CO2. These benefits are sometimes described as ‘ecosystem services’.
The benefits provided by a tree depend on its species, size and the environmental conditions where it is growing. Treezilla automatically calculates the benefits for each tree in its database.
The task is to compare the benefits provided by two common species of tree. These particular species are very different in their environmental benefits. View the guide below and open www.treezilla.org to get started.
Duration and pattern of use
This activity will take you about 30 minutes. You will familiarise yourself with Treezilla, search for relevant data and then analyse and interpret it.
Resources
It is usually easier to carry out this particular investigation on a desktop computer or tablet rather than using the Treezilla iOS and Android apps (which are available to download for free in the respective app stores). An internet connection is required.
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