What’s Going On Here?
Ethiopia has broken a tree planting record previously held by India by planting more than 350 million trees in less than a day – in fact it was actually a tree-mendous 353,633,660 in 12 hours!
This comes just as The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) recommends that the UK needs to plant 1.5 billion or 30,000 hectares worth of trees every year to meet the goal to become “net zero” carbon emissions by 2050.
What Does This Mean?
Earlier this month, a study found that restoring forests is the most effective solution available for climate change right now. It concluded that if we planted 500 billion trees, we could see carbon dioxide levels fall by 25%.
But this needs to be done fast, because they need to mature to really do their thing for future generations. The woodland trust say this must be done quickly. On top, as our planet warms up, the potential to plant in some areas will reduce, like the Tropics.
That’s why the speedy work by Ethiopia is setting the rest of the world a good example.
Why Should We Care?
If we want to meet these tree planting targets to plant 1.5 billion trees each year in the UK and 500 billion trees globally, we need to follow Ethiopia’s lead.
Since last year, the UK government helped to fund the planting of 2 million trees including the Urban Tree Challenge Fund which focused on urban spaces so we know we’re on the right root…
But the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) says that we need to be planting more than double what we planted last year and possibly more if we don’t meet other carbon reduction targets.
Now, if everyone in the UK with a garden planted two trees each, that would be 45 million knocked off the target and if those same gardens had 2 trees planted EVERY year until 2050, this would be 1.3 billion trees!
Be Curious!
Go on, how many trees could YOU plant in 12 hours?
Here’s how you can help:
- Plant a tree! Learn how here
- If you don’t have a garden – you can dedicate a tree as a gift or donate a tree to be planted where you choose here.
- Apply for a grant to plant trees – If you are a landowner, you can apply for the Woodland Creation Grant
- Get your school or university or sports club plants for free – The Woodland Trust are offering free trees for schools, universities and community groups.
