Department of Environmental Conservation

MS Forest Resources

Project:

Measuring Breaking Strength of Climbing Systems

Contact:

arsherma’at’eco.umass.eduarsherma(at)eco.umass.edu
Office: Ag. Eng. 109

Position:

Research Assistant

Support:

TreeFund

Faculty Advisor:

Brian Kane

Project Abstract:

Planted Street Tree Growth in the Urban Environment:

Planting trees in the urban environment provides unique challenges to urban foresters and arborists.  Urban trees are subject to harsh growing conditions including limited growing space and poor soil conditions such as soil compaction.  Understanding how newly planted trees grow in the urban environment can provide valuable insight and allow managers of the urban forest to set realistic and achievable goals for urban greening projects.  As urban greening projects become more widespread, arborists and urban foresters will be increasingly asked to provide expertise pertaining to growth expectations.  Many recent greening projects set future goals based simply on number of trees planted.  Achieving the ultimate goal of increased ecosystem services and social benefits is largely dependent on the growth of the newly planted trees, not just how many are planted.  The Grow Boston Greener project for example not only has a tree planting goal, but also hopes to increase the cities canopy cover from 29% to 35% by 2020.  Reaching this goal will only be possible if the planted trees grow at a reasonable rate.  The overall goal of my research is to assess the growth of newly planted trees in the urban environment where they are expected to become established.

Climbing Systems:

In the past two decades, dramatic changes in tree climbing gear and techniques have occurred. The simple (and uncomfortable) bowline on a bight tied in three-strand manila climbing line has given way to synthetic braided lines, ascenders, and friction savers. Some techniques have undeniably made climbing safer and more efficient, but for others, this is not entirely clear. With each additional piece of gear in a climbing system, for example, the climber is responsible for more knowledge about the gear, a good understanding of its limitations, and careful inspection of sometimes-complex gear. Presumed ergonomic advantages of novel climbing systems are untested.

Part of the increase in novel techniques seems to be related to the ITCC, in which competitors from around the world seek new twists to impress the judges. To the best of the investigator’s knowledge, robust tests of new climbing systems and gear have not been carried out, aside from manufacturers’ testing. In such cases, tests are conducted in accordance with existing standards and accepted practice for the discipline for which the system was originally developed. This means that no tests have been conducted with respect to tree climbing practices typically employed in North America. An increasingly popular single rope technique (SRT) that employs a cammed ascender on a single rope will be tested for its strength when used with climbing lines. The project has broad application to climbers around the world, and will provide important baseline knowledge about climbing systems adapted from other disciplines.