Low results in Eco

Section for FAQs regarding i-Tree Eco (UFORE)

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anne-sophie.lessard
Posts: 5
Joined: Tue Aug 23, 2022 1:18 pm

Low results in Eco

Post by anne-sophie.lessard » Wed May 31, 2023 3:29 pm

Hello,

I'm getting really low results with i-Tree ECO in terms of ecosystem service values. For example, a 37 cm dbh poplar only has an avoided runoff value of 0.1 m3/yr (in Montreal region, Canada). I was expecting about 1.0 m3/yr, based on a previous project with a study area located a few km from my actual project, for the same study year. I'm using the latest version of i-Tree (6.0.32), has anyone else had this kind of issue? I have double-checked the dhb unit and configuration parameters. In past projects, I haven't encountered this kind of error.

I used basic input data, i.e. dbh, species name, crown light exposure, with fair completeness weather station.

I was wondering if you were aware of an issue in the new version of i-Tree, or if you had any ideas to fix this?

Thank you!

Anne-Sophie
Jason.Henning
i-Tree Team
Posts: 340
Joined: Fri Dec 21, 2012 7:45 am

Re: Low results in Eco

Post by Jason.Henning » Fri Jun 02, 2023 8:46 am

Hi Anne-Sophie,
The avoided run off numbers are very sensitive to the incoming rainfall. It is likely that the weather station you are using does not have accurate or complete rainfall measurements for the selected year. You can check the amount of incoming rainfall of your selected station and year combination to see how much they align with averages for your location. Then you can change the weather station and/or year to find a precipitation data set that is more representative of your location. These changes are made under the "Project Configuration" tab. You will likely need to set the editing mode to "on" before making those changes and resubmit your project for processing after editing. You can alos see the annual total precipitation for each weather station during that selection process.
You will probably want to make a copy of your project to retain the original for comparison.
Thanks,
Jason
A member of the i-Tree Team
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