>newground
CEES staff member Heather Barr works at the project's site
“If you build it, they will come.”
So says Lenore Tedesco, director of the Center for Earth and Environmental Science at IUPUI. She is describing nothing less than the building of a forest in downtown Indianapolis on a one-mile stretch along the banks of the White River.
And they have come: scientists, students, teachers, civic groups, corporate and community volunteers, not to mention birds, butterflies, dragonflies, deer, muskrats, and a meadow full of wildflowers.
“The Lilly Arbor project offers a unique opportunity to witness the evolution of nature,” says Tedesco.
Planning started in 1998 and in 2000 the center planted the first trees. Since then, the center has sought to make the maintenance of the forest part of their educational programs. As Tedesco points out, “Children enjoy taking measurements alongside researchers at the site.”
With the help of the Eli Lilly and Company Foundation and the Rotary Club of Indianapolis, the experiment is a great success with far-reaching effects. It is providing a site for studying the growth of an urban river-margin forest. It is testing the best way to restore riverbanks by comparing the three most common methods for planting trees to restore native forests.
According to Tedesco, “Containerized trees are surviving best, though this method is more expensive than the others.”
It also completes a bird migration corridor through Marion County. “When we began the project,” Tedesco elaborates, “only three to five species of birds could be found in the area. Now we have over 50 species.”
However, Tedesco seems most proud of the community involvement. “This project has never just been about research scientists. It has shown us that a community can work together to improve the environment.”
There is also much for all to learn about scientific exploration. “Only time will tell exactly how the experiment will unfold. We have many questions about how the project will take shape because this habitat is not representative of a mature forest,” says Tedesco.
>Liz Rosdeitcher
To learn more about the project go to www.cees.iupui.edu/ARBOR/.
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