Children dig deep for tree planting
Students from Kilbowie Primary School and St Eunan’s Primary school, will be teaming up with the Woodland Trust Scotland and The Environment Trust (West Dunbartonshire) to take part in tree planting initiative to create a lasting woodland legacy at the new Drumry Linear Park, Clydebank.
Three hundred trees will be planted as part of a project to develop the open space around Drumry into a park offering a range of recreational possibilities, whilst improving the visual amenity of the area
The school children are creating woodland havens for hundreds of species and for future generations to enjoy. Not only do they have the excitement of planting trees for themselves, but they can also see their trees grow. The Trust hopes these initiatives will inspire today’s youngsters to engage with nature and become environmental custodians of the future.
The Tree planting is part of the Woodland Trust’s ‘Tree For All’ campaign, the biggest ever children’s tree planting operation. It aims to involve one million children in planting 12 million trees across the UK – the equivalent to one tree for every child under the age of 16.
Rebecca Whitley of the Woodland Trust said: “’Tree For All’ is a call to action in a time when the protection and planting of new woodland is becoming increasingly important as our natural world comes under siege. Children are losing touch with nature, so ‘Tree for All’ is a great opportunity to get children involved with their local environment, creating new areas of native woodland and helping them to be the guardians of the future.”
The ‘Tree For All’ campaign has involved over one million people, the majority being school children, and has planted over four and a half million trees across the UK. In all, approximately 15,000 schools, 624 community groups and 100 major partners have been involved so far. In all, since the campaign began, over 2,020 hectares (5,000 acres) of new woodland has been created.
The Environment Trust intends to continue working with the community and the Woodland Trust over the next few years to further develop woodland capacity in the new Drumry Linear Park along with improved path networks and natural play spaces for children. Louise McAllister says “It is vital that we engage with our communities to raise awareness of the value of our natural heritage. Encouraging participation in the creation and protection of greenspace is vital for the sustainability of our local environments”.
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For more information contact Jacqui Morris on 01355 578777, mobile 07979 706675
Notes to Editor:
The Woodland Trust: The Woodland Trust is the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity. It has 300,000 members and supporters. The Trust has four key aims: i) No further loss of ancient woodland; ii) Restoring and improving the biodiversity of woods; iii) Increasing new native woodland; iv) Increasing people’s understanding and enjoyment of woodland.
Established in 1972, the Woodland Trust now has over 1,000 sites in its care covering approximately 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres).
In 1984, the Trust acquired its first wood in Scotland. Today the Trust owns 80 sites across Scotland covering 8,100 hectares. Further news can be accessed via www.woodland-trust.org.uk
The Environment Trust
The West Dunbartonshire Environment Trust is a charitable limited company established in 2003, to work in partnership with local communities to realise the full potential of West Dunbartonshire as a high quality sustainable environment for the benefit of all.
