Biggest ever tree planting year for fast expanding Northern Forest which passes through North Yorkshire

The Northern Forest has seen its biggest ever tree planting yearThe Northern Forest has seen its biggest ever tree planting year
The Northern Forest has seen its biggest ever tree planting year
More than 1.9 million trees – enough to fill more than 1200 football pitches - were planted across the Northern Forest in the last year.

The bumper season – with the most trees planted since the project began more than six years ago - means nearly eight million new trees have been established across cities, towns and countryside since the Northern Forest project began.

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A new map of the plantings shows the scale of the scheme which has seen more than 87,000 people in the most deprived areas now within 500 metres of woodland.

Nick Sellwood who leads the Woodland Trust’s Northern Forest team said, whilst celebrating the achievements of the project so far, there is much work to do.

Trees have been planted across the north of EnglandTrees have been planted across the north of England
Trees have been planted across the north of England

He said: “It was a very ambitious vision when we began the Northern Forest but what has been achieved for communities across the north, by bringing multiple agencies together, is nothing short of remarkable, with delivery increasing year on year, with this season being a bumper year and there is much more still to do.

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“There are now thousands more trees in cities, in the countryside – and in more inhospitable places high up in the Pennines.

“More new woodlands bring huge benefits to people - not just in terms of well being, but in jobs and a boost to businesses and the economy through the likes of improving air quality, reducing flooding and creating green jobs. “With more trees desperately needed across the UK to fight the ever-growing threat of climate change, we hope that the Northern Forest could inspire similar transformative projects in other parts of the country.”

The project started in 2018 when the Woodland Trust joined with a host of Community Forests – The Mersey Forest, City of Trees (Greater Manchester), Humber Forest, White Rose Forest and Community Forest Trust - with a vision to establish 50 million trees over 25 years from Liverpool to Hull in an area with just 7.6 per cent tree cover (compared to the national average of 13 per cent).

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Since then, it has delivered transformational change – a report by Liverpool John Moores University and commissioned by Northern Forest partners, showed that millions of new trees have brought a £43 million boost per year for those living in the Northern Forest, and 300,000 extra households are now less than 10 minutes’ walk away from publicly accessible woodland.

Paul Nolan, Director of The Mersey Forest and Chair of England’s Community Forests, said: “We’re committed to working together as organisations and with our communities, businesses and landowners to increase tree coverage across the north of England.

“Ensuring everyone has access to woodland and green space is vital for our communities’ wellbeing and trees will play an ever more important role as we adapt to a changing climate.

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“We look forward to working with Defra and our partners to deliver more woodlands and greenspaces that will boost biodiversity, enhance our local economies and provide vital shade and cooling in our towns and cities.”

For more information on the Northern Forest visit: https://thenorthernforest.org.uk/

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