Saturday 8 February 2020

Government awards funding to plant 50,000 trees to support net zero goal

Government awards funding to plant 50,000 trees to support net zero goal

A total of 13 projects have been awarded funding to plant a total of 50,000 trees across England to support the nation’s fight against climate change.

More than 22,000 large trees and 28,000 small trees will be planted in urban communities, including Middlesbrough, Slough, Northumberland, London and Cornwall.

The project will support the UK’s journey towards net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 as trees store carbon and can help make towns and cities more resilient.

It is part of the first round of the £10 million Urban Tree Challenge Fund, administered by the Forestry Commission, that will see a total of 130,000 trees planted across towns and cities in England by 2021.

The government previously committed to plant 30,000 hectares of trees a year by 2025.

Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers said: “Trees are vital in the fight against climate change, to tackle air pollution and help us achieve our net-zero target by 2050. But for local communities they are so much more. They allow green spaces to come together, help both physical and mental wellbeing and connect children and young people with nature.

“Our manifesto sets our ambition to have every new street lined with trees and the Urban Tree Challenge Fund complements this ambition, benefitting thousands of people for years to come.”

The second round of the fund will reopen for applications from individual tree planters later this year.

Written by

Bruna Pinhoni

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