JOPLIN, Mo. — The Missouri Department of Conservation helps an area community keep its Tree City USA status.

The M.D.C. has awarded the City of Joplin a grant worth more than $25,000 through its Community Forestry Cost-Share program. That will allow the city to update and assess the health of the tree inventory within city parks.

Paul Bloomberg, the Director of Parks and Recreation, said data collected from that survey will help plan the future of the city’s community forest.