The first of what will become a grove of nearly 400 trees on the Memorial Plaza, will arrive this summer at the World Trade Center site. Joe Daniels, 9/11 Memorial President, and the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, today announced this upcoming milestone.

Approximately a dozen trees will be brought in before the 9th anniversary of 9/11 and the planting of the trees will continue in stages. Work is now beginning to prepare the Memorial Plaza for the swamp white oak and sweetgum trees. The plaza will be raised approximately six feet from its current level to create a suspended paving system containing soil and irrigation for the trees. The Memorial Plaza will be one of the most sustainable, eco-friendly plazas every constructed. The project is pursuing the Gold certification under the LEED for New Construction program of the U.S. Green Building Council.  For now, the trees are being stored at a New Jersey nursery and are currently 32-feet tall. They are expected to grow an average of two feet per year.

As the New York Times reports, "The saplings, said Joseph C. Daniels, president of the 9/11 memorial, will be “the start of transforming the memorial site into a new green space in the heart of the World Trade Center.”