Carbon Capture -

The Premier Paper Group, the UK’s largest independent paper merchant, has held the latest of its successful tree planting action days on 23rd March in conjunction with the Woodland Trust, with some 1,000 new sapling trees planted by customers and staff at the Pullabrook Wood in the Bovey Valley National Nature Reserve.

Braving torrential rain and wintery conditions, members of Premier’s staff, together with some 20 customers, helped to plant around 1,000 saplings at Pullabrook Wood, helping to regrow and reflourish a forest area which had suffered an outbreak of the tree disease spread by Japanese Larch, a non-native tree species that was introduced to the woodland shortly after the Second World War.

This plant disease is sadly becoming an increasing problem for woodland owners as it gradually spreads and infects larch trees. It is a fungus-like disease which spreads and that causes extensive damage to trees and other plants, but is particularly dominant where stands of larch are growing in timber plantations. Since 2009, when it was discovered infecting and killing large numbers of Japanese larch trees in South West England, the Forestry Commission has developed a surveillance programme to monitor the spread of the infection.

The disease is regularly referred to by its scientific name Phytophthora ramorum and was diagnosed at Pullabrook Woods by the Forestry Commission’s Plant Health Team earlier last year. To reduce the chances of continuing infection, the larch stands had to be clear felled at the site prior to this recent event, and so following this, the area was prepared and cleared in preparation for the tree planting day by Premier staff and students from Exeter College back in November last year.

The 1,000 new saplings that were plating comprised of a variety of native woodland species, including Oak, Birch, Blackthorn, and Wild Cherry.

During the past year, more than 65,000 trees have been planted by Premier’s customers, all of whom have participated and engaged in Premier’s Carbon Capture scheme, which has helped to capture some 11,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions, a unique environmental achievement. Commenting on this latest tree planting day of action, Premier Paper Group, Marketing Executive, Brad Goldsmith, stated, “There is an immense sense of achievement in braving the elements, to plant a significant number of trees that will help regenerate this beautiful woodland. This is a great example of how customers, who engage in our Carbon Capture programme make a real difference in creating habitats that are vital to both wildlife and people. ”

##Pullabrook Woods This National Nature Reserve comprises of three adjacent sites – Yarner Woods, Trendlebere Down and the Bovey Valley Woodlands. The main habitats present are ancient woodland and heathland. The woodland is dominated by Oak, though other species are present including alder and willow in the wetter areas. Characteristic flowers of the woodland floor cow-wheat, bilberry and, where the soils are wetter, royal fern. Lichen and mosses are abundant. Breeding birds are typical of western oakwoods, and include pied flycatcher and redstart. Dormice breed at the site, and there is a rich invertebrate fauna, including the high brown fritillary butterfly. Trendlebere Down provides a glorious expanse of heathlands and valley mire habitat, typical of the Dartmoor fringe.

##The Woodland Trust The Woodland Trust believe that life is better with trees: trees improve the quality of the air that we breathe, provide the natural habitat for an array of UK wildlife (including 250 endangered species) and form nature’s magical playground for children and adults alike. The Woodland Trust has been planting trees and standing up for woodland for over 40 years. They’ve planted over 36 million trees, saved 532 woods, and have 22,586 hectares of ancient woodland under restoration. Today, they’re an even louder voice for woodland and the species that call it home.

The Woodland Trust fight to protect the country’s most wildlife-rich and unique ancient woods. Just 2% remain and once lost can’t be replaced. Home to vulnerable species like the dormouse, ancient woodlands aren’t afforded the protection many might imagine.

The Woodland Trust look after 1000 woods which are open year-round for the public to enjoy free of charge. Every year they create over 1,500 hectares of new native woodland, much with the help of schools and communities to create urban green spaces.

The Woodland Trust is a charity registered in England and Wales (No 294344) and in Scotland (No SC038885): To find out more go to www.woodlandtrust.org.uk.

Premier and the Woodland Trust

The Premier Paper Group supports the Woodland Trust through the Woodland Carbon Scheme. For the past 5 years, Premier Paper has given green minded customers like you the opportunity to capture carbon released from the production, storage and distribution of the paper you buy and sell. Premier Paper customers who engage in the carbon capture scheme pay £8.50 per ton of paper and this is then passed on to the Woodland Trust to fund the planting of trees. 19,000 tonnes of carbon have been captured through the scheme, resulting in the creation of almost 50 hectares of new native woodland in the UK.

In 2014 Premier launched Woodland Trust Office Paper. The carbon generated from the production and distribution of each ream of paper is captured by planting trees in the UK through the Woodland Trust’s Woodland Carbon scheme. The paper is fully FSC certified and much of the energy used to make the paper is generated from waste materials from the pulp and papermaking process, resulting in zero CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. So far over 205,000 reams have been sold, creating 1.75 hectares of new native woodland in the UK. In total, Premier’s partnership with the Woodland Trust has raised over £500,000 for the Woodland Trust since 2011.

Carbon Capture®

Premier Paper is offering its customers the opportunity to capture the CO2 emissions from their paper purchases by planting and conserving native woodland right here in the UK. As a corporate partner of the Woodland Trust, Premier Paper signed up to its UK Woodland Carbon Code. This programme sets a new standard for Carbon Capture, removing it from the atmosphere through the creation of native woodland across the country.

The scheme operates under the Government’s Woodland Carbon Code, a voluntary standard for woodland creation projects in the UK. The independent certification to this standard provides assurance and clarity about the carbon benefits of these sustainably managed woodlands. It is calculated that 25m² of native UK woodland will capture and store one tonne of CO2 and creating large areas of new native woodland, will, over time, remove hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

For more information on the Carbon Capture programme, view our information pack here.