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The sense of awe and wonder inspired by the sweeping vistas as one rounds the bend on Route 33 and Athens comes into full view is hard to replicate. Dotted by treetops and stately red brick buildings, the hills are alive, indeed.

Jen Bowman (opens in a new window), BS 鈥�97, MS 鈥�00, knows that feeling well. While studying environmental geology and environmental geochemistry at OHIO, she took part in many tree plantings. Now, more than two decades later, she marvels at those same trees during her daily commute to the George Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Service (opens in a new window), where she serves as the director of environmental programs.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a nice reminder that trees are a long-term solution,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey provide a riparian corridor and so much more鈥攑roviding shade, taking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, providing habitat, being aesthetically pleasing and promoting well-being.鈥�

The role of trees as an environmental solution is central to the ethos at the Voinovich School, which has been heavily involved in local reforestation efforts in recent years. One current focus is planting projects along stream and river banks, also known as riparian zones, which help create a vegetative buffer to improve water quality and promote biodiversity.

Read on to learn about three current projects that showcase how the Voinovich School鈥檚 efforts (opens in a new window) are branching out in support of the region.

For the last 34 years, Athens has been a 鈥溾€� community for its continued commitment to urban forestry, and the Voinovich School is serious about its part in maintaining the designation, performing regular regional tree plantings and seeking key partnerships and funding opportunities for maximum impact.

鈥淲e鈥檝e always had a focus on tree plantings, but I would say it has been a concerted effort since we received some funding from the Longleaf Foundation,鈥� Bowman says, adding that an Appalachian Ohio Watershed Support grant from the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has also been pivotal.

Tying it all together is an developed by Caroline Van Hook, BS 鈥�21, during her time as a Voinovich Undergraduate Research Scholar (opens in a new window) (supported by Voinovich environmental specialist Nora Sullivan (opens in a new window), MSES, MA 鈥�16). The map details the school鈥檚 stream riparian planting projects (opens in a new window), from Amesville Elementary to the Hockhocking Adena Bikeway.

One current point of interest is the section of the Hocking River directly behind the Athens Community Center on East State Street, where two tree plantings have taken place since 2022 to help stabilize the riparian corridor and replace invasive species with shade trees such as bald cypress and river birch. The project has brought all hands on deck, uniting the Voinovich School; the ; the and more than 30 citizen volunteers.

鈥淲e need to make sure we are managing these spaces so people can use and enjoy them,鈥� says Katherine Ann Jordan, who serves as Athens鈥� director of arts, parks and recreation. 鈥淸That section] was a huge amount of acreage that was not usable before we started restoring it. Now, I鈥檓 starting to see people take walks with their dogs or even go sunbathing.鈥�

Water law expert John Thorson once said, 鈥淲ater links us to our neighbor in a way more profound and complex than any other.鈥�

The puts those words into practice, with a goal to address water quality issues identified by the Ohio EPA in historically underserved areas of Appalachia, as identified using the federal EPA鈥檚 . Supported by an , WARP will span three years and 32 counties in a collaboration between the local nonprofit and the Voinovich School.

鈥淣ot all communities have the same level of access to resources鈥攖hat鈥檚 where the WARP project comes in,鈥� says Sarah Benton, a restoration project manager with Rural Action.

A key part of WARP will identify landowners who want to improve the streams on their property; as of late spring 2024, 30 have signed on. Furthering that effort will be , a free online tool developed at OHIO that is being updated by Sullivan and Honors Tutorial College (opens in a new window) environmental studies major Blake Madden.

鈥淲e鈥檙e using data to target those areas that are impacted with sedimentation and sections of stream that are lacking a riparian buffer,鈥� Bowman says. 鈥淧utting those two things together will help us target where we want to do the most beneficial planting.鈥�

From there, Rural Action and OHIO will focus on strategies to offset sediment from erosion, acid mine drainage, agricultural runoff and more, starting with the planting of 1,000 native trees and shrubs along eroding streams that will benefit the most. Ultimately, Benton says, the teams hope WARP will kick off a project pipeline to address erosion issues in the future. 鈥淚鈥檓 excited about the trees we鈥檙e planting now,鈥� she notes, 鈥渂ut also for the trees we鈥檒l plant because of this project later.鈥�

In 2021, the planted 8,000 young trees and saplings across 25 acres, creating the world鈥檚 largest repository of American white oak trees. But Athens may not be far behind.

OHIO is collaborating with the University of Kentucky, Rural Action, Sugar Bush Valley Farm and the to compare selective seed sources of white oak established side-by-side in Southeast Ohio. The goal is to determine which grow best, using those to begin replenishing the white oak population in light of high demand from producers of bourbon, wine and lumber.

鈥淭he bourbon industry is legally required to use oak from American sources, which began to outpace the ability of white oak to regenerate,鈥� explains Eliana Balit, MSES 鈥�24, who conducted their graduate practicum on the project. 鈥淲hite oaks are of particular interest because they host thousands of different species; if [abundance declines], there could be a huge environmental cascade effect.鈥�

, established by the Voinovich School and Rural Action with partial funding via a donation from in Jackson, Ohio, took place in March 2023; since then, Balit and others have been taking regular measurements and photosynthetic readings to monitor the trees鈥� progress.

The work is poised to be particularly impactful in Southeast Ohio, where mature hardwood forests provide many ecosystem services. For associate professor Sarah Davis (opens in a new window), Balit鈥檚 research advisor, it also speaks to the Voinovich School鈥檚 overall mission of making a positive impact on communities in the region.

鈥淒eveloping best practices for sustainable forest management is really important for healthy communities,鈥� Davis says. 鈥淚f we think carefully about how we develop [our natural resources], we can grow an economy that doesn鈥檛 sacrifice the ecological benefits of the forests in the region.鈥�

Feature photo by Ben Wirtz Siegel, BSVC 鈥�02