AI can be a game-changer for the world's forests. Here's how

Work by AI for Earth researchers at Columbia University sheds even more light on why accurate, detailed, and up-to-date information is important. Dr Maria Uriarte, an ecologist, and Dr Tian Zheng, a statistician, have been studying the impact of extreme weather on forests and their regrowth patterns, with an eye towards the impact this has on carbon sequestration abilities – shorter, younger and less dense forests are less effective than older, denser areas. She recently took a team to Puerto Rico to assess the damage to the forests following Hurricane Maria. Uriarte and Zheng, both affiliated with the Data Science Institute at Columbia, will eventually use the collected data, with the remote-sensing images and measurements, to come up with a detailed estimate of the loss from the storm. Without current baseline data and a forward-leaning view of what the forest inventory may be in the future, planners may undervalue forests, or countries may over-value sequestration abilities.