The Premier Paper Group, the UK’s largest independent paper merchant with a nationwide network of regional stock holding branches, has announced that it is planning another mega day of tree planting action this year, where it is looking to plant some 3,000 trees at a site in rural Hertfordshire.
Already this year customers who participate in Premier’s Carbon Capture scheme have helped plant over 54,000 trees through the Woodland Trust. Following a hugely successful day of action at the same location last year, where some 3,000 trees were planted in one morning, Premier are looking to repeat the achievement again this year.
The trees will be planted by customers and the Premier Paper Group staff, who will be assembled from across the country at The Woodland Trust-owned Heartwood Forest in Hertfordshire, a site which is set to become the UK’s largest continuous new native woodland.
The tree planting day of action will take place on 19th November, and the native tree species that will be planted include; common oak, silver birch, wild cherry, dog rose, blackthorn, aspen, field maple, rowan and hornbeam amongst others.
Speaking about the success of last year’s tree planting day and the plans for this year’s initiative, David Jones, Premier Paper Group Marketing Director said: “3,000 trees in a morning is an incredible achievement and something that we were all very proud of. Obviously, we would like to achieve the same again this year or with the help of our customers surpass this target.” The Premier Paper Group, which is the UK’s largest independent paper merchant, recognises that planting trees helps soak up unwanted carbon dioxide which pollutes the atmosphere, a process known as Carbon Capture®.
Heartwood Forest
Heartwood Forest, located just north of St Albans in Hertfordshire, is an 857-acre site and is the largest of The Woodland Trust’s woods in England and also the largest continuous new native woodland in the country. It consists of ancient woodland dating back to at least 1600AD as well as newly planted woodland.
The Woodland Trust
The Woodland Trust works tirelessly to create a UK rich in woodlands which can benefit our environment and be enjoyed and valued by everyone. Woodland not only provides a rich, bio diverse environment for wildlife but also provides us all with green, open space for rest and recreation. More than 1,200 woodlands throughout the UK are owned or managed by the Woodland Trust, covering in excess of 60,000 acres throughout the UK, with free and easy year round access for us all to enjoy. Trees improve our quality of life, making our local communities and neighbourhoods greener and more pleasant places to live.
The Woodland Trust has nearly 350 sites which contain ancient woodland of which 70% is semi-natural ancient woodland – land which has been under tree cover since at least 1600. It also manages over 110 Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and has created over 32 km2 (12 sq. mi) of new woodland including 250 new community woods in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. 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
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.