Pacific Southwest Research Station

Education

Research Interests/Duties

Current Emphases, Studies, Projects

Dr. Greg McPherson is a Research Forester with the USDA Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Research Station located in Davis, CA, Greg grew up under a canopy of American elm trees in the small town of Howell, Michigan. Despite attempts to save the trees, all were lost to Dutch elm disease, and having felt the sting of that loss he became a "green" accountant, developing new methods and tools for quantifying the value of nature’s benefits from city trees. He works with a team of 3 other scientists who measure and model effects of trees on energy use, urban heat islands, air pollutant uptake, carbon sequestration, and rainfall interception. Their research is helping justify investments in urban forest planning and management. In 2000 Greg received the International Society of Arboriculture’s (ISA) L.C. Chadwick Award for Research. Greg Chairs the ISA Science and Research Committee and serves on the California Urban Forest Council’s Policy Advisory Committee. He attended University of Michigan (BGS), Utah State University (Masters in Landscape Architecture), and SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (Ph.D. Forestry).