Internships

Emeline Blohm ’25

Major

Civil and Environmental Engineering

Project Title

Assessing Coastal Resiliency of New York City’s Urban Forest

Presentation Link

View Emeline's Presentation

I studied the vulnerability of New York City’s urban forests to coastal factors such as high-speed winds, saltwater intrusion, and wind-driven salt spray. I assisted in collecting tree health assessment data for 21 planted species in order to assess their suitability for planting in coastal areas. We randomly selected 10 trees of each species in areas along the coastline that are most at risk for saltwater flooding, and then designed a control group of 10 trees for each species further inland where they are at low risk of salt exposure. I performed over 500 individual tree assessments to collect data on the health and environmental tolerance of different tree species. From this, I gained substantial experience in tree identification, most particularly for the species we were studying directly. I participated in fieldwork planning, implementation, data collection, and data management. I cherished the opportunity to conduct well-focused field research that will directly inform species selection for tree planting. As I continue to study climate resiliency in an urban setting, I’m excited to explore how we can draw on a variety of resources and harness both engineering tools and nature-based solutions.